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 Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 11:11 am
He was trying to pick his way through the book of New England haunts from Gwen, but... it wasn't easy. They were great... as stories... but as soon as he started thinking about actually seeing something like that in person, it turned into a bizarre Scooby Doo sort of scenario where he was tipped off to the fakeness of the elaborate ghost by the smell of rubber and the greasy weird smell of cheap makeup and fixative.
The smells and sharp details remained... strong. Stronger than he was sure was normal, and he was starting to think Gwen's clearly hyperactive imagination was wearing off on him. He couldn't remember -smelling- things he'd been imagining before. Or in such detail that you'd notice the exact edge where someone had used some sort of latex glue to pin it to their face.
He took the guitar he'd brought with him out of it's case, tossed the book in with an impatient, frustrated thunk, and tried very very hard not to imagine that... thing with the 'haunted' trash can and the racoon. The memory of that smell hung with him, and he didn't need his imagination to make the thought of it make him want to gag.
Instead he tried to relax and start strumming a few practice cords, and tune it up. Hmm... yeah... that was a bit better. Why had he put this thing away for so long anyway? It would be fantastic at a party. He should see if there were any to go to. That would be a nice change from having vermin try and go for his face.
He insisted that it had. Gwen insisted he had startled the 'poor thing' and it had fled.
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 12:12 pm
Lily had given up trying to fight the need to be in high places. It had no rhyme or reason--it wasn't like she was even short--but the nagging sensation that scratched its way down her spine every time she was outside was too great a force for her to weather unchecked. Sure, it was a little odd, but people in general had all sorts of weird coping mechanisms during finals week, and Lily was fine accepting that hers was some throwback to childhood nostalgia.
At least her height proved to be an asset in her struggles--long arms and legs were uniquely suited for bridging the gap between branches, and she'd clambered up her chosen perch with ease, leaving her jacket on the campus green below. Remaining perched, however, was a different subject entirely, however, and the limbs that had been so instrumental in helping her assent now poked out awkwardly from the wooden niche she had taken as her lofty seat. It wasn't elegant-looking in the slightest, but she managed to find some form of comfort in the perch, and with the strange itch in her mind sated for the moment, she closed her eyes and sighed, finally able to rest.
That was, at least, until the guitar twanged below.
It wasn't bad guitar, per se--she thought she might have even recognized the song the player was going for. But it was a curious enough occurance that Lily unfurled from her hiding places in the branches, dropping down to the tier below.
"Sweet riffs, bro," Lily called down dryly, using one hand to steady herself on a branch while she used the other to pull leaves out of her long tendrils of dark hair. "You starting a garage band in the park or something?"
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 12:26 pm
The player didn't yelp. but then again, the guitar did it for him when he struck a startled, loud 'Bwrannnnggggggg~' in response to the voice from above. He scrambled up onto his knees and whirled around, blinking. Holy s**t what the hell was she doing in the... He cleared his throat, trying to scrape together enough pieces of his dignity to pass for normal and deliberately settled back down, adjusting the guitar across his lap. "Ha, no. This thing has been kicking around in my closet since I moved here, figured I'd pull it out and tune it up. Maybe I will though." He added, prepared to take up the gauntlet on the idea. What else was he going to do? Hunt witches all summer? "And you're, what. Hanging around? Or.... let me guess. Haunted tree or... magical bird?" She wasn't Gwen but after trying to burn through that damn book, he sort of had the subject on the brain.
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 12:37 pm
Lily should have expected the guy to freak out on her sudden descent, but if she might have guessed his response she showed no sign of it, staring at him nonplussed while she licked at her teeth.
"Well, you got the grunge thing going for you already, so you're halfway there," she noted, giving him a cursory glance down and up from under her heavy eyeshadow. She made no effort to climb down further, her legs folded neatly over one of the branches.
"It's a nice day out, I wanted some fresh air," Lily shrugged, her fingers curling around the branch she'd chosen as foundation. "Tree's in public property, figured 'might as well'."
Her eyes flickered down to his guitar, then back to his eyes, looking bored but nevertheless focused. "What's your excuse, Kurt Cobain?"
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 12:53 pm
"Same, nice day, was bored..." He gestured at the book in the guitar case. "Trying to read that thing to make someone happy but it's hard to read that many ghost stories and not expect the goddamn Mystery Machine to come rolling down the block. Which to be fair around here maybe that would be normal. I mean... I figured I can either go examine the supposed 'portal to another dimension' that apparently exists if you go to some spot in the library when the light is flickering." (He made actual air quotes around 'portal to another dimension'. ) "Or i can come read a book, chill out, and tune up my guitar. I decided to go with the option that doesn't smell like old books, old carpet, and you know... may actually produce results. I mean she's a nice girl but I think she watched one too many episodes of X files."
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 7:19 pm
"You reading something is going to make someone happy?" Lily glanced down at the book, which was just out of range for her to read the letters across its front. Her legs were sturdy on the branch, if she just reached a bit further she might be able to see what it said...
She stopped herself just short of full-on hanging upside down, deciding that it wasn't worth the potential fall, and instead just accepted that it was something about ghost stories, like he said.
"There is a portal in the library, though," she hummed, tilting her head to watch the way her ponytail unfurled and tumbled towards the ground. It was getting so long--when was the last time she'd had it cut? "Straight to hell, but it's only open during finals week. I've watched three undergrads throw themselves on the pyre, and that was just today."
She looked up for his response, and gave a twitch of a smile that might have indicated that she'd been joking.
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Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 5:58 am
For a second, he actually looked startled and maybe confused, not sure if she was actually agreeing with Gwen... until she got to the part about Finals, and then the confusion broke away into an eye-roll and a snort. "Nice. Very Nice." He sighed. "So I take it you're not a believer in the town legends?" He asked. "Any idea where all that came from anyway? I mean were there like witch burnings here or something back in the bad ol' days or do you think someone just got bored and thought it would attract the new Age Crowd? I mean I think it worked for Salem. Haunted tours and all that jazz."
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Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 10:58 am
"I dunno," Lily shrugged, choosing to lay across her chosen branch like it might have been a friend's bed at a sleepover. "I've never seen anything, but I'm not a local, so maybe I just haven't had enough of the punch yet." It wasn't outside the realm of possibility that there was some truth to whatever stories she'd heard, but none of the local myths had done much to pique her interest.
"What about you, Teen Spirit?" She rested her head on her hands, but her fingers wiggled in a half assed attempt at jazz hands. "You seen any specters around?"
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Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 12:57 pm
"Only the Saturday morning cartoon types." Falco shrugged. "So far Spooky's count of 'there is totally something supernatural' includes somehow getting tangled in her neighbors laundry line and turning into a sheet ghost... and a raccoon. But then I've only lived here for a bit over a year so who knows, maybe it takes longer for the weird to soak in." Then again, this was the second girl he'd met who's feet were literally not on the ground, even if she seemed to be a bit more skeptical. "...Also it's Falco." He was pretty sure at some point the 'Teen Spirit' thing might have been cool but he was also pretty sure the first thing people thought of now was deodorant
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Posted: Sat May 07, 2016 10:38 am
"Sounds like some serious bad vibes," Lily drawled, ending with a yawn. "Some hardcore spooks right there, you better call Ghostbusters or something." Again came that twitch of a smile, mostly smooshed by the way her face was lying against her arms.
"Like the Star Fox character?" she mused, curling her fingers through the tresses of her draped hair. "That's pretty rad."
"My name's Lily," she added, after a pause. "What's your major?"
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Posted: Sat May 07, 2016 1:13 pm
"I don't know if it was that rad... especially not with Auto correct." Falco shrugged, flattered but also a little embarrassed. He still felt his name was a bit weird and might well have wished it on another, though he guessed it was at least memorable... give or take a few "Starfox" and "Rock me Amadeus" jokes. "I'm... undeclared at the moment." He was a little embarrassed by that too, but dang it he just didn't -know-. It felt huge, or irrelevant, or both. "You?" She probably had her s**t together, or so he imagined. Even sitting in a tree she looked kind of like the type who would have her s**t together.
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Posted: Sun May 08, 2016 8:34 pm
"Exercise science," she responded with a lackluster wave of her free arms. "I'm gonna teach the world how to get fit and all that jazz, it's gonna be a blast." Her heavy eyeliner didn't really suggest workout guru, but now that she pointed it out, it did look like she was in fact wearing gym clothes. They were mostly black, but it still counted.
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Posted: Mon May 09, 2016 11:20 am
Falco, who had no idea that her workout of choice included Yoga... had such an idea no where on his radar. Her black gym clothes and eyeliner made him suspect she was going to be on his tv screen some weekend in the future, advertising the newest dancersize routine, potentially one with a lot of absolutely howling guitar and drums. A sort of flash in the pan way to make your fortune but at least more likely than 'be discovered by an talent scout and become a rock god by next Thursday'. "Well good on you. I'm still getting the 'decide what to do with your future' speech. I suggested -not- going into debt with student loans but that went over about as well as you'd think. I guess I don't blame 'em but whatever."
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2016 12:43 pm
"Eh, it was a choice, can't even say it was a great one," Lily shrugged, leaning into the branch she'd sprawled out on. "None of this has to determine what you do with your life anyway, so take your time, figure it out on your terms, screw anyone who says otherwise."
She sighed, looking away at nothing in particular. After a moment, she ruffled her bangs, trying to think of something different to say. "So...you got any cool riffs packed away in your head? Any 'Smoke on the Water' action or something?"
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2016 2:18 pm
"Heh. Yeah I guess that's true I just... I don't know, you know? I feel like everyone's expecting me to either crash and burn or turn around and show up in a starched suit and tie or something, cut my hair and get a business degree. He grimaced at this last idea like it left an smell worse than the dumpster dive. "But hey, it still sounds like you found something cool. Good on you, right? You gonna stay in Ashdown or...?"
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