the pinch grabs his attention and he glances over, eyes meeting piper's for just a split second before she heads off. without words he knows and he follows. just like he has since he was a kid, followed behind his older siblings. anywhere. off a cliff if that's what piper told him was cool. "you okay?" griffin asks as they get outside, pulling at the sleeves of his too-short jacket. it's a dumb question because he knows nothing is okay and he felt that same way she did in there, the grief and sadness weighing on everyone, making it hard to even think straight. "some of the flowers in there are dying already. they should've caught that. the bereavement committee people or whatever."
🗝️ dedicated to griffin talbot / @chappcdlips . 📍 redemption chappell ( kirby's funeral service ) .
the one place that should feel safe merely laces piper's very bones with discomfort. the emotions of funeral attendees loom over their heads; a cloud of gloom that is almost palpable, a fog so heavy that it suffocates— she stands suddenly. there are surely only minutes to spare before a sermon begins & being here feels impossible. fingers pinch at the fabric of griffin's shirt, then withdraw like she's been scorched. it's irresponsible to pull him away from their family mourning, but it's also a silent plea— walk out with me. don't make me leave alone. she blinks down at him, then spins on her heel.
many of my posts are made much funnier by the fact that I’m hot. try to remember this so you can fully appreciate them
everyone should thank me because as bad as i am, i am holding myself back from being much worse
"yeah, if you're a masochist who wants to get your heart broken, a mess is alluring." and she had plenty experience with that sort of attraction unfortunately, but it always made for a good story and isn't that what really mattered at the end of the day? "alright, alright, relax, i'm just giving you shit. the article was fine, bash. not a lot you can fucking do in this sort of situation." shreya shrugged before taking a long drink of her dirty shirley. she stirred the straw around, tilting her head to the side and humming, "i mean, i'm glad i didn't have to write it." she'd rather stick to the not highly publicized stuff. she was, of course, a self-proclaimed personality hire.
THE SMOOTH BUZZ WAS a lazy attempt to rid of any frustrations vibrating within his body. the whole town felt on edge, ready to fall at the slightest drop of a pin. he shrugged at shreya's rebuttal nonchalantly. ❝ never mentioned beauty , some people would argue even messes can be alluring , ❞ he meant that truly, even if it wasn't relevant for the woman side him. what were humans if not all poetically broken? still, the dig at the headline caused his lighthearted mannerisms to tighten. it wasn't something he was particularly proud of, which was unfortunate considering he was rather protective over his work. but news came out, deadlines were due, the opportunity was painted in red that now stained his hands. ❝ right , like i had a fucking choice . ' hey bennett , can i take the day off to mourn this latest tragdy ? ' ' yeah , let's just shut down the register for the day . ' that sounds practical . ❞ he mused with irritation, rolling his eyes in irritability as he downed his drink in response.
griffin tugged down the hood of his sweatshirt as he entered the kitchen — not necessary to be the more hermitic version of himself in kieran's presence — hands shoved in the pocket as he approached the counter. he wasn't sure what he expected when kieran told him to come downstairs, but the array of weapons spread out across the cold countertop weren't exactly what he had imagined. and he was sure his face said as much, eyes slightly widened and eyebrows shooting up his forehead, "this looks like a hunger games survival kit. who are you? haymitch?" he would be dead from the jump in that scenario. or maybe he'd hide like peeta. regardless, griffin wasn't sure of his skills with weaponry of any kind. "you're trying to cause me twenty-one more years of absolutely no dates, huh?" he gestured to the hello kitty taser, which looked about as threatening as a sleeping golden retriever despite its designated purpose. he looked up at kieran, "i'm gonna need a utility belt." then griffin paused, deciding to finally set the jokes aside and humor kieran as had been requested, a deep sigh pulled from his lips, "do you really think i'll be able to do anything useful with these things? not saying that they aren't useful, but i'm not the most..." he trailed off, glancing back down at the things his older brother had brought, "i feel like i'd just fuck myself up with the bear spray on accident or something like that, if y'know what i mean." he wasn't physically imposing like his brother and he wasn't exactly coordinated. he had thrown a punch maybe once in defense of angela when they were kids and he had missed and nearly fallen on his face which was mostly just incredibly embarrassing and not-at-all tough. but, all that aside, he understood what kieran was doing and why he was worried and he loved him for it. as a kid, griffin had practically hero worshipped kieran, thinking of him as a protector, as a person to emulate — everything an older brother is supposed to be. in some capacity, he still thought those things, but he knew, too, that now that they were older, kieran wasn't always around to be those things. griffin wasn't trailing behind him down the sidewalk like a shadow anymore. and even if he was, when if it came down to it, it seemed the boogeyman had no problem taking down those who seemed big and strong. griffin ran his fingers gingerly over the knuckle dusters, "it's only gonna get worse, huh? the murders and attacks? i mean, that was the pattern the first time, right?"
ꜜ ﹙ ⚰️ ﹚ ﹕ sometimes, looking at his brother felt like looking at himself⸻ a reflection of his own timid set of shoulders, the way anxiety and fear clung to him like cigarette smoke. and it was a terrifying thought, that griffin could be carrying all the same emotions he did when he was at that age. those feelings of being small and inconsequential, so insidious with how it could compel him to fold himself up in so many ways as to not take too much space and draw attention in such a big terrible world that devoured people like them. and there was nothing in this world he wouldn't do, not a sharp knife he wouldn't jump in front of, just to make sure his brother never think, even for a second, that he didn't matter— that his softness wouldn't be enough to keep him whole. but kieran also knew that he wouldn't always be able to protect griffin ﹕ not that kid who used to follow him and his friends around anymore, couldn't just put his hands over griffin's eyes whenever something abhorrent happened, like taylan beating someone up or finch pissing in the middle of street like a bad dog. though, maybe this could be a helpful⸻ objects solemnly laid out like artifacts on display, every item looking incredibly barbaric on top of their father's sleek choice for a countertop. a bear spray, bright orange, its purpose blaring like a hazard light ; the hello kitty taser he got on sale from amazon, as though violence could be sanitized by design ; and the knuckle dusters, inherently brutish, something primal made manifest. and kieran stared at them for a long time, as he wondered if his brother could stomach it ... how protection, if it came down to it, would demand more than tools. it called for instinct, resolve, the kind of hard calculus that turned you into something you might not recognize.
then, he thought about the memory of alaina price, not just the soft recollection of laughter or late night babysitting when they were kids, but the raw unflinching truth of the morgue. he'd been there when thierry gore unzipped the bag and made the first incision in that sterile and cold room. he was the one who weighed and cataloged her organs like they belonged to a stranger, not the girl who taught him how to braid piper's hair or told them monsters weren't real. and kieran had held her heart in his gloved hands, felt the emptiness in it, and wondered if she had known— really known— how brutal the world could be. how wrong she was about the monsters. and it was the kind of knowledge he couldn't risk griffin learning the same way. ❝ hey, c'mere for a second, ❞ kieran beckoned to the kitchen once griffin finally came downstairs, his expression quiet but deliberate, hand brushing briefly over the taser's smooth surface before retreating, as though unwilling to impose the weight of his fears too heavily on his brother. despite how raw the memory of seeing alaina's corpse was, the lacerations in her flesh, the way memories of her effortless smile had been replaced with seeing her lips purple and slack. ❝ just humor me, alright ? i want you to carry this stuff, please. ❞ no sharpness in his tone, no explicit urgency— only the quiet unyielding care of someone who had seen too much and refused to let it happen again. ❝ it gets dark so early now, i don't want you walking 'round without anything to protect yourself. ❞ @chappcdlips
( geraldine viswanathan . cis woman . she / her ) . ⸻ shreya howe , a twenty - seven year old , has survived another day in red creek where they have lived for their whole life ( besides college ) . the gossip is known for being curious and overbearing and is often associated with talking so fast the words run together , naps taken anywhere , music blaring in headphones . in a small town where they work as a journalist at the register word travels fast . it’s hard to keep a secret , and it looks like the boogeyman knows that redacted .
STATS
full name: shreya naomi howe hometown: red creek, mi sexuality: queer (really just... into anyone who will give her an abundance of attention) birthday: august 1 zodiac: leo sun, cancer moon, aries rising height: 5’6” languages spoken: english, na'vi (language from avatar (2009)) marital status: single children: none traits: curious, outgoing, assertive, impatient, overbearing, nosy
BACKGROUND tw parental death
shreya has no memories of her dad, she used to pretend when she was in kindergarten that she remembered saying her first word and saying it to him, but that was a lie she crafted to make herself feel even remotely better of only knowing him from pictures and stories
she was always an outgoing, loud child, could make friends with anyone and was always the first to reach out to new kids in class or in town; half of this was out of the kindness of her heart and the other half her nagging curiosity to know Everything about everyone
despite chandra's religious preoccupation, she took solace in her mom, going to church with her, following her around to try and keep close, make sure nothing ever happened to her like it did to her dad
she, of course, spent plenty of time bothering her older brother, playing the usual annoying little sister role and always ALWAYS looked up to darshan, he's the closest thing to a father figure she ever had
when she was 11, chandra died after a brief, horrible illness, and shreya wasn't sure if she herself would survive it, but darshan came home and he took care of her and she's not sure if she'll ever be able to repay him for that sacrifice
she covered up her grief with humor and her big personality, always putting on a smile and keeping an appearance of everything being chill and cool
when she graduated high school, she shipped off to ohio university to study journalism, but she knew her path would always lead her back to red creek
she returned and got a job at the register where she is allowed to gossip for a LIVING, which she loves <33
she knew daniela growing up and her disappearance has kinds fucked w her, plus now kirby dying??? she's like what the HELL is going on? beautiful young women are under fire... shreya said EYE could be next??? anyway, she's never been good at handling her grief, so all this violence and sadness in town is definitely not helping!
PERSONALITY AND FUN FACTS
she's friendly! sometimes almost TOO friendly and sometimes it's only because she wants a quote or some scoop for her latest article, but she does have a big heart! lover girl core underneath all the jokes and all the grief
was absolutely the first one to text the group chat when queen elizabeth died and then shot off a series of tweets that probably could get her fired... her henry kissinger death tweets? even more unhinged
curious, just loves to Know things, wants to know everything down to the tiniest detail
probably shouldn't tell her secrets but she loves to be told secrets
she IS a loyal friend though, will not be breaking codes of friendship unless she thinks it could really benefit her career
pretty anti-religion; religion didn't save her mom so now she's kinda like... what the hell @ god? u canNOT be real if all this shit happened to me
big flirt, loves dating and loves The Chase (loves to be chased), but has not had many serious relationships bc that would require emotional vulnerability that she is not equipped for; she LOVES when people are vulnerable to her but cannot reciprocate it
probably a little annoying but in an endearing way
does NOT play about the people she loves, will fight you if you're mean to the people she cares about, fiercely protective
lives with a lot of guilt, mostly in regard to darshan giving up so much to take care of her when their mom passed
has a lot of special interests (na'vi, fantasy novels aka fairy smut, writes fanfiction, lover of wes anderson movies)
sleeps with socks on
has a black cat named chip and he is her baby, her pride and joy
also has a garden in her yard, most of it is dead but neverthless... she persists! (someone come help)
character inspo: velma (scooby doo), liz (shrinking), lois lane (superman), betty (riverdale), lilly (the princess diaries)