"Sorry... Sorry, I Didn't Mean To Freak You Out." Griffin Murmured, Moving Out Of The Doorway And Into

besides being a lifelong part of the town, shreya's gone to the memorial to cover it for the paper. she expected it would mostly be a puff piece with some in memoriam type parts to balance it, make it a respectful piece. but as soon as the veil drops, there's a gasp, and suddenly the piece isn't an article commemorating the town's losses. it's replaced with something darker, something hard to read and something even harder to write. "what the hell?" she murmurs, wide eyes flicking over the extra names, the names of people she knows, some of people she cares deeply about. when alara grabs her hand, shreya glances over, the realization that alara's own family is represented on the new list washing over her. "fuck. i... do you want to get out of here?" is what she asks, empathy bowling over the journalist inside of her.

LOCATION : the candlelit memorial , sometime around 5pm . open to everyone .

there  was  something  so  surreal  about  the  things  that  were  happening  in  red  creek  ,  for  the  first  time  the  thoughts  touching  her  in  more  than  just  a  passing  way  .  when  she  was  younger  ,  she  had  been  so  idealistic  ,  protected  by  her  parents  and  looking  forwards  to  life  .  she  thought  now  that  maybe  her  eyes  were  opening  little  by  little  to  what  was  really  going  on  and  how  those  losses  must  feel  ,  empathetic  heart  bleeding  more  and  more  for  those  left  behind  .  she  isn't  there  for  personal  mourning  but  to  think  about  the  lives  that  have  been  lost  ,  to  consider  the  hole  they  left  in  the  world  and  all  their  lives  .  then  ,  the  veil  is  pulled  back  and  there's  more  writing  than  she  remembers  ,  a  second  for  her  brain  to  catch  up  to  the  foreign  thing  that  is  taking  place  ...  she  doesn't  make  a  noise  as  others  seem  to  have  some  kind  of  reaction  .  blink  once  .  instinctually  ,  she  reaches  out  and  grabs  onto  the  hand  of  the  person  standing  beside  her  ,  having  came  alone  ,  separated  initially  from  anyone  .  it  is  almost  a  knee  jerk  reaction  but  she  doesn't  let  go  ,  least  of  all  trying  to  comprehend  the  presence  of  her  sisters  name  .  not  a  word  spoken  .  fight  ,  flight  ...  freeze  .

//   (  jessica henwick .  cis woman  .  she/her  )  .    ⸻  fawn liao ,  a  thirty  year  old  ,  has  survived  another  day  in  red  creek  where  they  have  lived  for  her whole life  .  the  pretender  is  known  for  being  clever  and  dishonest  and  is  often  associated  with  rings on every finger, a sharp tongue, the smell of incense clinging to clothes  .  in  a  small  town  where  they  work  as  a reader at sisters of the moon  word  travels  fast  .  it’s  hard  to  keep  a  secret  ,  and  it  looks  like  the  boogeyman  knows  that  redacted .

STATS

full name: fawn may liao   hometown: red creek, mi   sexuality: lesbian  birthday: april 2   zodiac: aries sun, capricorn moon, capricorn rising  height: 5’6”  languages spoken: english marital status: divorced children: none  traits: clever, adaptable, confident, dishonest, cynical, self-indulgent 

BACKGROUND tw parental death, neglect mentions 

oldest of the new generation of liaos and is just as bad as the rest <33 

when her mom died, fawn was barely old enough to brush her own teeth much less raise her little siblings but alas… that’s what she had to do 

their father, of course, was all but useless, fawn can’t remember a time when he actually did the things dads should do 

she tried to help keep things together at home and it made her angry and it made her strong in a way she shouldn’t have had to be, so naturally, she needed someone to blame — that person was june 

she tried at first, she swears, but it became easier just to let her frustration and anger reflect in the way she treated her youngest sibling 

she was smart and good at school, but not in the “pleasure to have in class” and way, more in the constantly trying to prove the teacher’s point is wrong sort of way that teachers don’t tend to like 

she graduated high school middle of the road, she skipped class a lot and had to take care of things at home 

as soon as she graduated, she moved out of her dad’s trailer and rented a house 

the house is tiny and a lot of shit is broken but she still lives there, it’s home 

she didn’t have money to go to college and she didn’t have the desire either, so she just kept doing what she does best: scamming 

since middle school, she would run little grifts, making false returns at stores and tricking adults into giving her money because she was “a few cents short” as well as planting hairs and bugs in meals at restaurants to get a free meal 

when she got older, the scams got more elaborate and she became a constant guest at the local hospital running car and bike accident insurance fraud scams— if she had had the time and money, she would have been a theater kid (derogatory), because baby is an ACTRESS 

now fawn works at sisters of the moon, which just happens to be another one of her scams bc… she’s not psychic and doesn’t have any magical “gifts,” she’s just really, really good at fooling people 

she was married, briefly, in her early twenties (potential wc…) but her wife left her after a few years bc… she’s kind of an asshole and also has never healthily expressed an emotion in her life 

PERSONALITY & FUN FACTS 

very angry, but good at hiding it most of the time, has a punching bag in her basement w pictures of her various enemies taped to it 

always lying, not just at work, she loves to lie just for fun <33 and about everything <333 

never talks about her mom unless it’s to guilt someone into doing something for her 

doesn’t believe in “guilty” pleasures, just pleasure 

scarily confident, a bit of a narcissist 

has a twitter where she shit posts and live tweets tv shows she illegally streams bc she doesn’t have cable or a single streaming service 

very charismatic and charming when she wants to be 

definitely sleeps around a lot and always has 

she has a skewed view of intimacy and sex makes her feel like maybe she’s kinda normal 

has a cat named ritten (rotten kitten) that she loves more than she’s loved any person including her ex-wife 

despite her known life of scamming and fraud, has only had a few brushes with the law, prides herself on this fact 

maternal in a tough love way, has a soft spot for Some (not june) 

again, zero emotional intelligence to be found 

trying to quit smoking, it’s not going well 

character inspo: fiona (shameless), rossi (criminal minds), zinnia (matilda), the wizard (wicked), kady (the magicians) 

"what? it's even illegal to walk down the street these days?" her words come out in a deadpan as she stops in her tracks, a safe enough distance away to not scare the other even further. she's joking, mostly, but the tone doesn't leave her voice when she continues, "i'll start wearing a bell like a cat or somethin'." her own cat doesn't have a collar much less a bell – ritten is a citizen of the world, not fawn's house. her gaze flicks to the price house then and fawn hums, glove-free hands sliding into her warm coat pockets, "yeah, everyone's on edge. or on the edge. or both." she mutters, looking away from the house and back at maeve. growing up in town, she's accustomed to things suddenly becoming haunted. haunted by memory more than real ghosts. she was young twenty-five years ago, but she has pieces of memories of how things were before and after. her life was miserable before and after, so, really, she supposes it doesn't make that much of a difference. and yet, fawn, not a believer in anything, still finds herself avoiding the places that feel haunted. it's just what this town does to you. or maybe it's just what misery does to you. "it's only a matter of time before kids are breakin' in to try and see bloodstains or something." she shakes her head as if to shake that image away altogether. though, if she were younger, she may have been one of those kids, "but c'est la vie in red creek, i guess." fawn hums, a tight, mirthless smile slipping onto her lips.

🗝️ open starter for anyone. 📍 norwood street, just outside of maeve's front door.

✦ ⋰ norwood street feels particularly haunted now. it's a feeling that maeve can't escape – the moment she steps out of her front door, she's there. it's there. she often finds herself looking at the front door of alaina's home like a deer caught in headlights. so close, but impossibly far on the one night that it mattered. maeve nivans has finally met with a problem she couldn't fix ; alaina price was murdered- gone from red creek forever- possibly joined the uncomfortably long list of people that you just didn't talk about. she wonders if alaina's home will be notated as the price house in red creek history ; reduced to a horrific event & molded into a haunted house to prod at in the same way the thorne house was. her heart seizes at the thought. as she peers at alaina's front door, it almost feels like someone looks back — she nearly jumps out of her skin when she hears the footsteps. hand pressed to her heart, she nearly squeaks. ❝ oh my god. a warning would be nice. ❞ the anxiety is a new hurdle, too. an unwelcome guest that moved in with the ghosts on october 31st. she breathes out through her nose before offering a warmer expression– ❝ sorry, sorry. i'm just— on edge recently. you understand. ❞

//   (  spike fearn .  cis man  .  he/him  )  .    ⸻  griffin talbot ,  a  twenty-one  year  old  ,  has  survived  another  day  in  red  creek  where  they  have  lived  for  his whole life  .  the  introvert  is  known  for  being  attentive  and  timid  and  is  often  associated  with  notes scribbled in margins, not speaking unless spoken to, long walks with no destination  .  in  a  small  town  where  they  work  as  a cashier at red creek pharmacy  word  travels  fast  .  it’s  hard  to  keep  a  secret  ,  and  it  looks  like  the  boogeyman  knows  that  redacted .

STATS

full name: griffin douglas talbot   hometown: red creek, mi   sexuality: bisexual  birthday: june 30   zodiac: cancer sun, cancer moon, capricorn rising  height: 5’9”  languages spoken: english, some spanish marital status: single children: none  traits: attentive, imaginative, independent, timid, oversensitive, evasive 

BACKGROUND tw drowning mention, anxiety  

the youngest of the talbot clan, griffin knew from a young age that his family was a Big Deal 

when he was little he liked the attention, he was a rambunctious and loud child, always running around trying to keep up with his older siblings 

this changed when he was 9; that summer, he was playing in a creek with some friends, he fell into a deep drop off and in a freak accident his foot got stuck in a sunken log and he was trapped beneath the surface for too long 

his friends eventually freed him but he had lost consciousness and was rushed to the local hospital 

he lived obvi, but the event left him traumatized and embarrassed and anxious all the time 

he started to withdraw, wracked with fear and anxiety, to this day he has pretty horrible social anxiety and is afraid to go near water 

he exceeded all expectations in school though, getting great grades and eventually getting into every college he applied to, including his dad’s alma mater, princeton

but he decided to stay local, commuting to school from red creek 

he’s in school to become a pharmacist which is why he works at the pharmacy part-time; he isn’t exactly passionate about pharmacology (he’ll happily collect those nice checks someday though) 

PERSONALITY & FUN FACTS 

painfully shy, social anxiety beating his ass daily 

much prefers to spend time alone or with very few close people 

reads a lot (likes horror, thriller, mysteries, but HATES true crime), plays videos games (idk which ones, i don’t go there), watches a lot of movies (letterboxd top four: star wars episode i, wallace and gromit (were-rabbit ofc), the parent trap, snakes on a plane) 

really into herpetology as a hobby and has a lizard, bearded dragon named wallace, and a snake, rainbow boa named gromit 

always has a plastic baggy of yellow starburst on him (he only really likes the yellow ones but will eat a different flavor if it’s offered by someone else) 

has so many pairs of socks that he just keeps them in a large cardboard box in the corner of his closet 

has never been in a relationship, is incredibly scared to do so and would not know where to begin 

but definitely has a number of crushes and a tier system for them 

writes shitty poetry and short stories for fun in a notebook he always carries around with his starburst baggy 

in typical baby brother fashion, thinks his older siblings are the coolest people alive 

a really good listener, he is observant and notices everything, so even though he’s probably not talking a lot he’s absorbing everything you’re saying 

hates the prominence of his family name these days, would rather live anonymously as some local nobody than be in the spotlight 

has had problems w insomnia since the incident at the creek, but he’s kinda okay with it bc more time to read and fall down a wikipedia hole or just go on a long ambling walk to nowhere 

big into tea, never drinks coffee 

sweet and very sensitive, like okay water sign 

incredibly caring towards those he loves 

 character inspo: jughead (riverdale), fez (that 70s show), ferb (really a ferb sun, baljeet moon) (phineas and ferb), quentin (the magicians), marcus (the bear) 

for? OPEN where? the pharmacy

he doesn't look up as the door swings open with another customer, keeping his gaze trained on the open book in front of him – it's shirley jackson's hangsaman. he does, though, call out (less of a call and more of something about a decibel louder than a mumble), "we're, uh... there's a two-for-one deal on gauze and band-aids right now." and the only reason he says anything at all is because it's allegedly his job to upsell. today's bogo deal seems a little too on the nose, though, considering the town's latest events, but griffin didn't come up with the sale. he just rings it up. he makes a quick, barely legible note in the margin with his fading black pen and flips the page, hoping whoever just came in doesn't need to know where anything is. or worse, want to exchange small talk with him.

//   (  spike fearn .  cis man  .  he/him  )  .    ⸻  griffin talbot ,  a  twenty-one  year  old  ,  has  survived  another  day  in  red  creek  where  they  have  lived  for  his whole life  .  the  introvert  is  known  for  being  attentive  and  timid  and  is  often  associated  with  notes scribbled in margins, not speaking unless spoken to, long walks with no destination  .  in  a  small  town  where  they  work  as  a cashier at red creek pharmacy  word  travels  fast  .  it’s  hard  to  keep  a  secret  ,  and  it  looks  like  the  boogeyman  knows  that  redacted .

STATS

full name: griffin douglas talbot   hometown: red creek, mi   sexuality: bisexual  birthday: june 30   zodiac: cancer sun, cancer moon, capricorn rising  height: 5’9”  languages spoken: english, some spanish marital status: single children: none  traits: attentive, imaginative, independent, timid, oversensitive, evasive 

BACKGROUND tw drowning mention, anxiety  

the youngest of the talbot clan, griffin knew from a young age that his family was a Big Deal 

when he was little he liked the attention, he was a rambunctious and loud child, always running around trying to keep up with his older siblings 

this changed when he was 9; that summer, he was playing in a creek with some friends, he fell into a deep drop off and in a freak accident his foot got stuck in a sunken log and he was trapped beneath the surface for too long 

his friends eventually freed him but he had lost consciousness and was rushed to the local hospital 

he lived obvi, but the event left him traumatized and embarrassed and anxious all the time 

he started to withdraw, wracked with fear and anxiety, to this day he has pretty horrible social anxiety and is afraid to go near water 

he exceeded all expectations in school though, getting great grades and eventually getting into every college he applied to, including his dad’s alma mater, princeton

but he decided to stay local, commuting to school from red creek 

he’s in school to become a pharmacist which is why he works at the pharmacy part-time; he isn’t exactly passionate about pharmacology (he’ll happily collect those nice checks someday though) 

PERSONALITY & FUN FACTS 

painfully shy, social anxiety beating his ass daily 

much prefers to spend time alone or with very few close people 

reads a lot (likes horror, thriller, mysteries, but HATES true crime), plays videos games (idk which ones, i don’t go there), watches a lot of movies (letterboxd top four: star wars episode i, wallace and gromit (were-rabbit ofc), the parent trap, snakes on a plane) 

really into herpetology as a hobby and has a lizard, bearded dragon named wallace, and a snake, rainbow boa named gromit 

always has a plastic baggy of yellow starburst on him (he only really likes the yellow ones but will eat a different flavor if it’s offered by someone else) 

has so many pairs of socks that he just keeps them in a large cardboard box in the corner of his closet 

has never been in a relationship, is incredibly scared to do so and would not know where to begin 

but definitely has a number of crushes and a tier system for them 

writes shitty poetry and short stories for fun in a notebook he always carries around with his starburst baggy 

in typical baby brother fashion, thinks his older siblings are the coolest people alive 

a really good listener, he is observant and notices everything, so even though he’s probably not talking a lot he’s absorbing everything you’re saying 

hates the prominence of his family name these days, would rather live anonymously as some local nobody than be in the spotlight 

has had problems w insomnia since the incident at the creek, but he’s kinda okay with it bc more time to read and fall down a wikipedia hole or just go on a long ambling walk to nowhere 

big into tea, never drinks coffee 

sweet and very sensitive, like okay water sign 

incredibly caring towards those he loves 

 character inspo: jughead (riverdale), fez (that 70s show), ferb (really a ferb sun, baljeet moon) (phineas and ferb), quentin (the magicians), marcus (the bear) 

She shuffled into the kitchen, running a hand through her messy hair as she took in the sight before her, "So glad it's you and not the goddamn Boogeyman." The timing of the joke is, admittedly, horrible, but she's never been subtle. "What time did you get here?" Shreya thought she might have heard something in the middle of the night, but she figured it was either her brother or her cat. If it was anything else? She was willing to face the consequences and die honorably. "Now, if I bought even a single piece of asparagus, I think the world might end. The Boogeyman, who is obviously surveilling me as one of the town's top journalists, could notice my change in pattern and suspect me of knowing something and BAM dead." She sat at the small table by the window, sighing dramatically, "And you wouldn't want that, right?"

Then, Shreya sobered slightly, resting her elbows on the table, "I'm surprised you don't have to work right now. Is it not all hands on deck?" She asked, already thinking about what she may have to write about the incident this coming week. "It's really fucking awful." And there's no way to get through it but to joke about her own mortality, obviously. "What's the sheriff saying? Anything?" She added, "This is all off the record, by the way, I'll save my scheming journalist bit for at least noon."

closed starter with: darshan and shreya (@chappcdlips) setting: shreya's home, 9am, the day after the incident

His eyes fluttered open, and a strangled gasp forced its way out of his painfully dry throat as he struggled to recognize his surroundings, but the panic settled as the comfort of familiarity took hold. It was Shreya’s couch, in Shreya’s living room, in Shreya’s home, where he’d let himself in at 3am after finding sleep impossible at his own home. Darshan wiped the trail of drool off his cheek, sitting up and stretching his aching back before wandering to her kitchen, opening the fridge- only to see a truly meager selection of food between the tupperware containers of his own leftovers. A stray carton of eggs saved the day, and he’d set off to make breakfast when he heard the shuffle of feet. “Hey, lazy bones. Did I wake you?” His voice was casual, but there was an unmistakable horror laced in every syllable. How could he shake the guilt? How could he cope with the relief he felt when he confirmed that the young girl found dead in town hall was not his family member? As if that made it better- that the loss was not his own. “You should really get some vegetables in your fridge, or something, you know. Even an apple, or a single piece of broccoli. Give your poor microwave a break, before it unionizes against you.” 

"hey, al." a smile spread across her lips, warm and inviting and practically the opposite of how she looked at pretty much any other member of the yalçınkaya family. and it wasn't fake (not mostly anyway), fawn actually did happen to like alara. she especially liked the attention she gave her, never one to complain about the rapt attention of a beautiful woman. and, maybe, she secretly hoped her closeness with alara pissed off the rest of the other's family. fawn was petty that way. "i've been around. you know me, always busy with something." fawn hummed, falling into step beside the other woman, "you should come by sisters, that's where i'm most likely to be these days. or my house. i'd give you the grand tour." she gave a playful wink, sliding her hands into her coat pockets as a slight shiver travelled through her in the cold. she used this an excuse to slide just a bit closer to alara, "what have you been up to, huh? anything new with you? give me the life update." she didn't even have to feign interest when talking to alara, which was a little refreshing. the charm was turned on high, sure, but she wasn't acting when it came to alara at the very least. "we need to accidentally run into one another more often, i think."

@chappcdlips / fawn

from  childhood  ,  alara  had  been  boisterous  .  she  had  been  filled  with  a  confidence  that  had  been  mirrored  throughout  her  life  and  made  her  quite  challenging  to  parent  despite  her  deep  sense  of  affection  and  care  .  there  were  few  people  she  had  met  in  her  life  that  had  ever  made  her  feel  a  sense  of  nervousness  or  anxiety  ,  any  kind  of  underlying  whisper  of  being  a  little  bit  on  edge  .  she  was  used  to  leading  a  dynamic  or  at  least  being  on  equal  footing  ...  and  yet  with  fawn  ,  she  always  felt  slightly  on  the  outside  of  herself  .  it  wasn't  that  any  particular  thing  had  happened  during  their  shared  lives  but  al's  childhood  infatuation  had  never  quite  came  to  pass  -  her  wistful  nature  never  allowing  her  to  quite  see  what  was  really  there  ,  a  sense  of  awe  and  adoration  filling  her  every  glance  when  it  came  to  the  other  woman  .  she  supported  womens  rights  and  wrongs  .  true  feminist  to  the  core  .   "  hey  stranger  ,  "  not  that  they  ever  really  were  .  not  that  there  was  any  part  of  her  that  ever  wanted  to  be  .  not  that  she  didn't  sometimes  imagine  on  those  lonelier  nights  in  her  childhood  bedroom  what  fawn  might  eat  for  breakfast  in  bed  (  such  was  the  nature  of  a  childhood  crush  ,  you  had  to  be  careful  not  to  take  it  too  far  ,  even  in  your  imagination  )  .  "  i  feel  like  i  haven't  seen  you  in  forever  ,  "  maybe  she  should  have  said  spoken  to  ...  she  had  definitely  seen  fawn  ...  here  and  there  .  around  town  .  looking  very  ...  fawn  .