Oliver Banks

Is there any difference between dreams and reality? Crystals. Books. Tarot

[askoliverbanks]

Salutations...

I'm making this blog for fun; if there's any fun left. I suppose the internet might prove me wrong.

This might also be a way to interact with people without learning certain... things I’d rather not know. Not that I could change your fate even if I wanted to.

I’m the proud owner of a shop in Soho, but I’ve been considering taking a trip. Doing some research on that at the moment.

Anyway, you can ask me things. Or not.

(Mun here! Hello to everyone reading this—just a few details about this RP blog. The askbox will always be open! Tiny amounts of NSFW are allowed as long as you're respectful. This blog will have spoilers for tma and possibly tmp. The banner picture is from this site. Anyways, have fun!)

[askoliverbanks]

/ooc

Hey guys!

I have an announcement to make

I'm going to take a break (not a huge one, but a break regardless)

You see, things aren't going great and I've been trying to get back on track, but I noticed that doing that is way more time consuming than expected and I'm not being able to keep up.

So... I won't be here to actively engage with the blog until I get my stuff together

I love roleplaying as Oliver and to roleplay with the community, so I thought that announcing this would be the fair thing to do.

Thank you guys for the support and all the love you give to Oliver! I'll be back as soon as possible to answer your asks and continue those rp chains I left unanswered

(Special apologies to the people I interact with and to everyone who left asks on the ask box!!!)

That's all there's to announce, thanks for reading!

Take care!

- Aël (Oliver's mod) <3

[askoliverbanks]

You've seen people die before, right?

What's the dumbest way you've seen someone die?

-A very curious Lonely Avatar

The dumbest way? Hmm... I once saw a guy that was walking with someone. This person was eating something, I couldn't really tell what, but the guy really wanted to take a bite.

Turns out this guy was allergic to that food and was very aware of it, but the person he was with didn't know how to use an EpiPen and they accidentally injected themselves.

They had a panic attack, couldn't call for help on time and the guy died.

[askoliverbanks]

Why, hello! Oliver's quite a nice name. May I have it?

My friend Mx. B. was in the Magnus Institute recently, and he had found your name in some of their files! From the sounds of it, you seemed rather aware of our creators. I was hoping I could get your help with something?

I'm very sorry about the mess, by the way. I just got a new face, and it's still rather fresh!

- @1face2faceredfaceblueface

Hello... Uhh... You can't have my name, but if you need help with something, tell me and I'll see what I can do.

[askoliverbanks]

*drops @floral-demise, @dread-powers-dumbass, @the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan, and @a-thousand-little-things (bee) into your shop*

end avatar meetup lets fuckin go

Oh... Uhh... Hi guys, this was unexpected, but it's a nice surprise to see y'all

[dread-powers-dumbass]

Oh hey Oliv…er… I do not know half these people what the fuck- [she muttered.]

uh… alright, what exactly is… happening here? Any ideas? This… some weird anons-trying-to-make-an-end-cult thing?

@floral-demise

[floral-demise]

"These 'anons' don't tend to make much sense, generally. Bizarre beings. We all serve Terminus, then?" Florian fidgets with a flower he'd had tucked behind his ear, twirling it absently.

@a-thousand-little-things

[a-thousand-little-things]

seems so. not too keen on cult stuff. i got shit to do anyway, don’t got time for it. and i’m not smart enough to start cults. think it’s just an end avatar meetup :) i’m bee btw

[butchersbutch]

Heh, cults.

[She nods. Then, after a long pause, raises her hand in gesture.]

Oh, er, I'm Millie, by the way. Its nice to meet you guys.

[She smiles, unevenly. Her teeth are sharp.]

[ad-astra-redibis]

[They've just appeared out of the wall at some point.]

"Do they really think we'd form a cult? We're servants of the end, not arson-happy desolation avatars..."

[They muttered.]

"I am also Oliver. Oli or Liv works fine, just for the sake of not getting confused."

[the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan]

" Cults hm? A cult wasn't originally a bad thing per se, the Ancient Greek used it to simply describe a group worshipping something or someone with rituals and other behaviours. After all, it comes from the Latin 'Colere', but commonly we use the definition from 'cultus' merely meaning worship. the definition simply changed over time."

[ he said, glancing down at his pocketwatch, before quickly noting something down into a small red notebook]

"do forgive me for rambling. I just thought I'd add. You can call me Cyset Yuán, apologies for it's difficult pronunciation."

[askoliverbanks]

So... Izzie, Florian, Bee, Millie, my namesake and Cyset, hopefully no one from the family is missing *he chuckles*

It's great to meet another Oliver, honestly

Do you guys want some tea? I really doubt the web is involved with this, so we could try to enjoy this time together

@dread-powers-dumbass

[dread-powers-dumbass]

I mean I’m up for it, yeah. [she grinned.] excuse to get out of work and meeting a bunch of other end avatars? Heck yes.

@floral-demise

[floral-demise]

“Some tea would be wonderful, thank you Oliver.” Florian surveys the group. “For those of you I have not yet met, I’m Florian Von Closen.”

@a-thousand-little-things

[a-thousand-little-things]

hello! i know you guys know my name already but— bee jones, hey. bee’s short for beatrice, though no one uses that. i’m usually with my friends— rowan santos and andrew sanchez, but they aren’t end avatars, which is probably why they weren’t summoned too. anyway, hi! i’d like some tea too :)

@butchersbutch

[butchersbutch]

[She shrugs, then folds the hand she'd previously raised, over her stomach.]

I dont really do tea. Oh, and uh, my names Millie. I've already said that, actually. Yeah. I'm, uh, its Millie, guys. Uh-huh, yeah.

// @ad-astra-redibis

[ad-astra-redibis]

"Tea would be lovely."

[They replied.]

"Do you perhaps have Jasmine tea?"

//@the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan

[the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan]

" I haven't actually drunk anything in quite a while, so tea does sound quite pleasant right now."

"I won't bore you all with the definitions and origins, but I must say- you all have quite uniquely pleasant names, well- less unique for the two Oliver's I suppose, but still pleasant."

@askoliverbanks

[askoliverbanks]

I think I do have jasmine tea, I'll check real quick.

Tea for everyone except for Millie.*He repeats to himself before going to the other room in the shop*

@dread-powers-dumbass

[dread-powers-dumbass]

[Izzie, for lack of a better word, felt a little bit out of place among the other end avatars, so she kind of gravitated towards Bee a bit. The other ones… knew what they were doing for the most part. She didn’t. It felt odd being in the same room with so many of them…. Bee at least was a familiar face.]

@floral-demise

[floral-demise]

Florian feels equally out of place, with so many unfamiliar faces. He’s technically only unfamiliar with Millie, Oliver #2, and Izzie, but those he had already met he doesn’t really know well yet. He tries awkwardly to break the tension in the room.

“Uh. Random icebreaker, anyone?”

@a-thousand-little-things

[a-thousand-little-things]

uhhh— when i was 7 i fought my andrew for the title of king of fish. rowan decided we should settle it by seeing who their fish chose. we stood on either side of the tank, and if it swam towards me, i was king of fish, and vice versa. the fish never swam towards either of us. we were there for hours.

er— what about you guys? anything happen to you that you wanna share?

@butchersbutch

[butchersbutch]

[She nods, then points a finger towards them. She doesnt seem too uncomftorable with their situation. Their situation being an unwanted hangout consisting of possibly dangerous strangers.]

Thats pretty cool. Me, myself, I've seen some shit. Theres not much I can share about that. My, uh, favorite colours purple, if that counts. Anyone else have anything cool to add? No?, ..

// @ad-astra-redibis

[ad-astra-redibis]

[They try to think of something worthwhile to add to the conversation. They’re not used to having conversations with a lot of people.]

“uhm… I too have seen my fair share of… stuff. Uhhhh, my partner just occasionally turns into a dog. I don't know I don't really do much. I have minimal trauma."

//@the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan

[the-chronology-of-cyset-yuan]

”hm. Small talk and ice breakers never were my strong suit, but I suppose I might as well indulge. I can speak 4 languages. Chinese, English , Latin and French. Along with this I know a bit of Hebrew and am currently learning Greek.”

@askoliverbanks

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*The shop was filled with murmuring of little end crowd. While everyone was getting to know eachother, little bird poked her head out of the box on the top of the shelf. She jumped out, running along the shelf board, and looking down. How many people are there! She didnt hear them walking in. And where's Oliver?? Bird cawed, and flew down onto the desk*

@askoliverbanks

//hiiiìi everyone

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver comes back with a tray that has cups, a teapot and sugar. He leaves it on the desk and starts serving the tea.* ohh... Guys I forgot to tell you about my crow friend, I hope no one is afraid of crows. *He lets her climb onto his shoulder* Grab your cup and use as much sugar as you want to. If you want milk, tell me and I'll bring some.

@dread-powers-dumbass

[askoliverbanks]

"Just letting you know, Ness might not be able to send messages for a bit. She's been sick and yeah. She'll survive."

-📼(@a-pizza-the-action-97)

Send her my regards, I hope she gets well soon...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I will. I'm Cass, by the way. I'm Ness' girlfriend."

[askoliverbanks]

Nice to meet you Cass, are you also being bothered by some of the fears?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Nice to meet you too. Yup. Web-marked; Agony-marked, weird one that is a whole story; and Eye-aligned."

[askoliverbanks]

Agony?... What's that? The desolation?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I wish. The name isn't even fitting. It's just what the jackass decided to call itself. Man turned eldritch fear entity I don't know."

[askoliverbanks]

You're telling me there are more than 14 fears out there?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Yeah. Maybe not 16 where you are but, pretty sure you still got the 15th"

[askoliverbanks]

I didn't know there was a 15th fear...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Huh. I mean, it is a newer one. Smirke didn't write about it. The Extinction is number 15, which I'm sure a lot of people just shrug it off as one of the others, especially the End. Maybe was a part of the End at one point. It's the fear of catastrophic change and well, the end of humanity. Which makes sense, I mean just the fear around things like climate change is CRAZY"

[askoliverbanks]

Yeah, it makes sense they put that in another category. So, the extinction covers the fear of events that are actually a consequence of humanity's wrongs. Did I get it right?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I'd say that's about right. There aren't many avatars, but I do know one. She's friendly, and actually is one of Ness' sisters. Wren Ramao."

[askoliverbanks]

I would be nice to meet her, knowing about a new entity really sparks my interest

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

//@wren-of-the-flock

[wren-of-the-flock]

hellooooooo dream boy. Our entities are cousins

[askoliverbanks]

How come you knew about me and I didn't know about you?

Nice to meet you Wren

[wren-of-the-flock]

couple statements bought you. I keep stealing them from the archive when i’m bored

[askoliverbanks]

That's such a flex, I can't even step near the institute without feeling observed. In what statements though? I only remember giving one, under a fake name

[wren-of-the-flock]

Eye can’t see you in the tunnels. Also the one with grifter’s bone.

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh... I remember her, at least she lived long enough to give a statement

[wren-of-the-flock]

nice. Went to the worlds worst concert and survived.

[askoliverbanks]

Maybe it was the world's best concert, but we'll never know *he smiles*

Something tells me you do know this, but you share names with a tiny songbird

[wren-of-the-flock]

fits with my crow motif

do you know they have merch? Grifters bone I mean

[askoliverbanks]

I suppose that they do that to attract more careless people to their shows

[wren-of-the-flock]

I think Gerry has one

[askoliverbanks]

That sounds something like Gerry would do

[wren-of-the-flock]

yeah he wears it around the archives sometimes- wait you know him?

[askoliverbanks]

I... I talked to him once or twice and I've heard a lot about him... So yes and no at the same time

[wren-of-the-flock]

..hmmmm interesting. What’ve you heard?

[askoliverbanks]

Uhh... That he's been able to survive the horrors, and that he gets very well with his coworkers...

[askoliverbanks]

iT'S bEeN a wHILe, hM¿

h0W aRE tHinGS¿ %)

- @tw1sty-b1tch

Michael, hi

Things are going fine, what about you?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sAMe hERe¡ p0SsiBLy¡ aS fINe aS tHINgs cAN bE wHEn y0U'Re maDnESs 'pErs0N'iFiEd¡

[askoliverbanks]

That's good to hear, seems like you're as dramatic as always *he scoffs* want something to drink? I've got tea, and coffee, and plain water

*While he waits for an answer he opens a drawer and takes out a box* I saw this and it reminded me of you *he opens the box and takes out a watch that's based on a low score clock drawing test* you didn't have a clock in those corridors the last time I checked, and you didn't have a clock in your wrist either

So, was it a waste of money or do you like it?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

suRE, i suPp0Se¡

i L0vE iT, THaNk y0U iNDeED¡!

[askoliverbanks]

Wait, really? That's great

*He gives Michael the watch and goes to bring two cups of tea* How do you like your tea, with or without milk?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N'T pARtIcULaRlY mINd¡!

[askoliverbanks]

With milk then,

So what have you been up to? Anything new with your corridors?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tHE USuAL¡ d0Es bEInG rELEnTlESsLY hARaSsED bY s0ME s0RT 0f wATchEr an0N c0uNT¿?

[askoliverbanks]

It does count, I hope that anon gets what they deserve at the end of the day *he chuckles softly* They didn't damage you a lot, did they? *He mixes up the tea in both cups and gives one to Michael*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

f0R a bEINg 0F LIes SUcH aS mYSeLF¿? tELliNG tHE tRUtH iS.. rATheR iNt0LeraBlE. sTILl, i'M HArdLY g0InG t0 lET s0Me 0VER pERsIStEnT aRcHivISt weAR mE d0wN¡

[askoliverbanks]

That's a great mindset, specially because something tells me that the eye loves messing with you, or vise versa, either way, I'm on your side

Watchers have an advantage when it comes to compulsion

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNDeEd tHEY d0¡

n0W, eN0uGh aB0Ut mE¡ wHAT aRE tHiNGs LIkE f0R y0U¿? n0T BEeN cRUsHED bY aNYm0Re sATiLliTEs, i'D h0Pe¿?

[askoliverbanks]

This is going to be a big surprise for you, I've been avoiding satellites *he chuckles*

So, I met some new people, I got a crow friend and I'm probably going to adopt a child.

Talking about the crow, I think we woke her up

Hi friend

// @curiouscrowseverywhere

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird takes her head our from under the wing and shakes off. She looks up at man and the Distortion. Crow jumps down from her post and demands pets from Oliver*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

aN iNTerEstiNG sPeciMeN..

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird turns her head and looks at Michael very closely*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM¿?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow jumps to the edge of the table and looks into coils of Michael's sweater and hair. Then all of a sudden she tries to catch one of moving spirals*

[askoliverbanks]

You don't mind her playing right? *He laughs* she seems to like you

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T aT aLl¡ %D

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird puts her head through one coil of Michael's hair and suddenly gets sucked into Distortion's dimensional body*

//bye bye birdie

//not forever dont worry

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver looks at Michael* That was... Unexpected... Uh... It may be much to ask but, please make sure she gets back safely. I really can't tell if she did that on purpose

*he sighs, looking a bit worried*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0 hARm wILl c0mE t0 hER, d0N't w0Rry

[askoliverbanks]

*He sighs in relief* Thank you

She likes to roam around and find trinkets

The other day we found rodent skulls, she also brought me a metal centipede *he smiles*

Having a crow friend is a bliss

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sHE s0uNDs LIkE a dELighT %)

[askoliverbanks]

She really is, does it feel the same as having that alligator in your corridors?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tHE aLliGat0R f0uNd a wAY t0.. fUSe inT0 tHe cArpET s0mEh0W, s0 n0T enTirElY¡

[askoliverbanks]

It still gives you company, but I'm guessing it's a different kind of bond since, in some way, it's part of you

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i SUpp0Se s0¡!

[askoliverbanks]

I wanted to ask you, if I didn't serve the end... Do you think I'd serve the spiral?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

wHERE iS tHIs c0mINg fR0m, mIGht i aSK¿?

[askoliverbanks]

I've been overthinking a bit, and I've been dreaming too... Nevermind, it's a stupid question, we should live in the present. There's no point in asking about what ifs

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tRUE¡! buT stILl, i d0 hAVE mY d0uBTs tHAT y0U w0uLD.

[askoliverbanks]

I'm guessing my fear is too tasty to go to waste *he laughs* what about you? If you weren't the distortion, who would you be? Just Michael?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM. i d0 sUPP0SE MichAEl w0ULd g0 0n bEiNg mIcHaEl, sTILl suRr0uNdED bY th0Se iDi0T wAtchErS. mAyBe hE'd diE gRuS0MelY iN s0Me 0tHer wAY, th0uGh, iT w0uLdn'T bE uNc0mM0n f0R aN aRchIvAL ASsiStANT.

[askoliverbanks]

That would've been the best case scenario for the spiral. Now I do get why you're not especially fond of the eye. I used to think it was because the eye and the spiral are kind of opposites.

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T aS 0Pp0sITES aS sAY.. t0o cL0Se i CaNn0T bReatHE aNd tHE FALiNg tITaN, bUt hArDLy c0MpaTiBLe. iT JuSt hAPpeNs t0 bE rAtHer pErs0NaL, iN mY cASE.

[askoliverbanks]

*he nods*

Pain is the easiest feeling to remember and you probably have twice as many memories to hold onto.

Would you prefer not to be Michael?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

..iNDeeD. i nEVer wAnTED t0 bE MIchaEL. hAvINg t0 wEAR y0UR gREaTEsT fAILuRE aS tHe fiBRe 0F y0uR bEinG..¿? eVEN bEf0Re i c0uLd wANt, iT wAsN'T a fATe i DEsiREd.

[askoliverbanks]

I wish I could help you with your whole "I'm the personification of an identity crisis" thing... Is there any way I can help?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T thAt i'M awARe 0F, bESiDeS, i'M fiNE¡! i D0n'T nEeD aNY hELp, i aSsuRe y0U

[askoliverbanks]

Okay Goldilocks, I'm only going to say that even whats need help sometimes.

[tw1sty-b1tch]

g0LdiL0cKs-¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm, Goldilocks *he takes a sip of his tea, trying not to laugh*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N't sEeM t0 f0Ll0W¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Really? You don't know who Goldilocks is?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sh0uLD i¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Not really, I assumed you knew

There's this children's fairy tale called Goldilocks and the three bears. In one of the versions, Goldilocks is a mischievous blonde girl with curly hair

I thought it would be funny to call you that, but only if you knew who Goldilocks was beforehand

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM, iT sEeMS fITtINg iN thAT REgaRD¡! %)

[askoliverbanks]

Since we agree, can I call you that occasionally?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

inDEeD y0u mAY¡!

[askoliverbanks]

*He smiles* Okay then *He takes a look at Michael's tea* do you want more?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNDEeD s0¡!

[askoliverbanks]

I'll go make some more, what's your favourite kind of tea? Mine is Earl Grey

Pretty basic, I know

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N't bELieVe i hAve mUCh 0f a PReFerENcE, h0nEStLy

[askoliverbanks]

Really?? So I could dump all the tea I've got here in your cup and you wouldn't mind?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

mY sENse 0F tAStE iS.. n0T eXaCtlY h0W iT'S mEanT t0 bE.

[askoliverbanks]

Nothing about you is exactly how it's "meant" to be, but in a good way

Oh, look, I made a tiny list about nice traits the fears have *he takes out a folded piece of paper from his pocket, grabs a pen, writes something at the end of it, and starts reading*

The eye is perceptive, the web is organised, the dark has an amazing spatial awareness, the hunt is perseverant, the stranger is authentic and the spiral is unique

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNtErEstiNg¡! miGhT i eNQuiRE aS t0 wHY y0U mADe thIs¿?

[askoliverbanks]

As a reminder

I don't want to forget that you can always find brightness, if you know where to look

[tw1sty-b1tch]

aWFuLly 0PtiMiStiC 0F y0U, hM¿?

[askoliverbanks]

You could say that, or you could say I'm brilliant for thinking about making this list

*he laughs* I'm kidding, I'm no genius, and I know it's silly, but it happens to lighten me up when I feel guilty for being a serial killer

[tw1sty-b1tch]

FAiR, i suPp0Se. sERiAL KILler iS a BIt 0f a STrEtcH, aS fAR PE0pLe cAuGHt uP iN thIS g0 y0U'Re b0RdErLiNE VIrtu0Us

[askoliverbanks]

*He smiles* Thanks for the compliment

From my point of view, you're also "borderline virtuous"

[askoliverbanks]

*familiar, rather nostalgic knocking, but not on the window. Sound comes low, from the door. Crow sits on the perch, looking up. Nothing changed, except for a few stray feathers, curled as if by haircurler*

@curiouscrowseverywhere

Friend *he looks at her and laughs a little, then pet's her* how was the distortion? Did you enjoy your trip through the corridors?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird caws and jumps between his legs, inside the shops. When she shakes off, few feathers fall out. They're still black, but tinged as if with gasoline spill. Wet wrap on her wing is still intact*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver picks up the fallen feathers and puts them on the table.* You look very fancy

I had your last visit to the vet scheduled for yesterday, but if you want I could call the guy and tell him we're going now

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird walks up to his feet and stomps on Oliver's boots. Looks like somebody is up to a vet ride*

[askoliverbanks]

Something tells me you want me to call the guy

*he does the call and helps her climb up to his shoulder. They go to the tube and ignore the weird looks they got from people. When they arrive at their stop, they walk a few blocks and enter the center. The vet welcomes them, checks the crow's wing and smiles. He says that her wing has healed nicely and now she only needed to practice to regain her ability to fly.

With that premise, instead of going back to the shop, they went to the nearest park*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is happy and active. On the way to the park she either looks around at the people or tries to groom Oliver's hair. When they arrive, she expects for him to lower her on the ground. Her little stick-like legs stomp impatiently on his shoulder*

[askoliverbanks]

*instead of lowering her down, he looks for a tree and finds one with a branch that isn't too high to reach, he lets her there* I've got an idea so you can move those wings a little more. I'll stand over there, just a few steps back, and you've got to jump towards me

How does that sound?

I'll catch you, don't worry about it, and... I've got some berries here *he smiles while he takes out a Ziploc bag with strawberries and blueberries, the vet gave it to him*

If you don't like the idea *he puts his hand in front of her* I'll get you off there and we'll try another thing

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird turned around on the branch to face Oliver. She tilts her head left and right, listening to the man. Blinked a few times looking at the zip with goodies. Well, why not engage. She stretches, flapping wings and then jumps, glides from branch to hand. She then runs up to man's shoulder and caws*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver smiles and gives her a strawberry, then grabs one for himself* What if now I stand a little further? *He picks her up and leaves her on the same branch, then stands two steps further from it. Since he did that without looking, he almost tripped with a bench. He laughs it off and straightens up* I know you can do it

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird cawed when he tripped, as if chuckling at him. She then jumped off the branch. Sje flapped wings and flew to the Oliver. A bit uneven, but it worked. She landed on his shoulder, spreading wings as if proud of herself*

[askoliverbanks]

One more time and we'll play something else *he gives her a blueberry and puts her back on the branch. Then, he stands in the same spot as before*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*she caws loudly. Flaps wings, jumps and flies up on his head. She nibbles on his hair*

[askoliverbanks]

*He laughs* Have the whole bag, you really deserve it *he opens the Ziploc bag and lifts it near her*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow puts her whole head inside the bag. quickly gobbles some berries and then jumps down on his shoulder. she climbs forward, looking into his face and blinking. wonder what other games he has prepared*

[askoliverbanks]

Friend, I did some research... and I need to show you something. *He walks around the park, like he's searching something. He stops walking when he sees that at one of the trees there are three crows, looking at them with curiosity. In the ground near a bench, there are two more* Avoiding that lady was one of the reasons we came to this park, but there's another thing, I found in a forum that a murder of crows was bothering the neighbours here... They say they're friendly if bring the right offerings *he chuckles as he puts the berries bag in the ground, without disturbing the other crows. The crows start approaching.* Do you want to go play with them?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is quiet. she listens to Oliver and eyes other crows. She flies down to the ground. Other two that were approaching stopped. She walked over to the bag and ate couple of berries out of it. When bird finally walked up to her she just stood there, watching. They immediately went for the berries, making soft sounds. Bird wasn't engaging for a while but then also started jumping near others.*

*while Oliver watched, somebody approached him. weird man, all in pink clothes stopped near him, also watching birds*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver glanced at the man* Hi, are you also here for the crows?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

M?

*man looks up at Oliver*

Oh, yeah. Fascinating birds. You also a fan?

*he smiles and takes out a bag of bird goodies. dryed bugs and all. he takes a step forward and places it beside the berry bag. birds get spooked, flying a few steps away, but then return, examining snacks*

[askoliverbanks]

I've got a friend, I don't know if she belonged to a murder of crows, but crows are highly sociable animals, so I brought her

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

You're friends with a crow? That's very cool. And cute. May i ask how you two met?

*he looks around and sits on the bench, gesturing for Oliver to sit near him*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver sits beside the man* One day she knocked on my window *he smiles*

Where did you get those treats? I've only found packs of dried mealworms, but that doesn't look really tasty, honestly.

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Ah, i have a friend at wildlife rescue center.

*he puts his hand inside his jacket and pulls out a zip bag with bird treats*

Here, you can have it. I have plenty on me. And, about mealworms, they don't look really tasty to you, pal

*he smiles*

[askoliverbanks]

Thanks, how much do I owe you?

And, well yeah, you're right, but maybe my crow friend is a picky eater *he laughs to himself* To be honest, I'm just making up excuses, I'll get her some mealworms too

Hang on, you said you have a friend at a wildlife rescue centre? What's their name? I've been going to one rescue center nearby, maybe I know them

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*he winks and smiles.*

Oh just take it, i don't mind at all. But next pack will be three dollars

*man scratches his beard, also dyed in pink*

Oh, he's Tim. Nice lad. I guess you were there because of your lil friend, am i right?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm

She got hurt, I don't know how, but she came to me and I tried to help her as best as I could.

Now she's alright, almost. She's still regaining her wing strength and ability to fly

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Happy to hear that. Being friends with corvids is beautiful thing

*he smiles as couple of black crows waddle towards him. Pink man takes out few dried kibbles out of his pocket and lowers his hand with the treats to the ground. The crows immediately jump up, destroying the pieces in a couple of seconds*

[askoliverbanks]

I can tell that you say that from experience

Can I ask what happened to your crow friend or friends?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

One day i found crow chick in my yard. I helped it go get back into the nest, and after i started to feed them and help with what i can

*he sat up, and one old crow flew up on the bench, sitting beside man. He took out a bit of treats again and offered to the bird*

[askoliverbanks]

That's so nice, did you ever get to see that chick again?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

If i'm correct it's right there. Called him Gerry

*man smiles, giving head scraches to a big crow beside him*

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh *he smiles too* would it bother him if I pet him?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

That's only up to him

*guy laughs and puts his hand away*

[askoliverbanks]

*he chuckles and nods, then puts his hand in front of the bird* hey Gerry, can I pet you?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*at first he varily pulled away, but after inspecting Oliver's hand, crow allows light scratches*

[askoliverbanks]

Thank you Gerry, nice to meet you *He opens the zip bag the guy gave him and offers some to the bird*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow enthusiastically takes treats, as man watches with a smile*

You are good with birds

[askoliverbanks]

I'm glad to hear that, thank you, I try my best

Before befriending a crow, I didn't know anything about them

Can you believe I only gave her berries?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Hah! I can, actually. They are not very picky

[askoliverbanks]

Lucky me they aren't *he smiles*

I think I didn't present myself

I'm Oliver, and my friend is right over there *he points to crow*

What's your name?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

I'm Michael

*man also smiles. he looks over at the crow*

You didn't came up with a name for her?

[askoliverbanks]

Uh... No... Who am I to give her a name? I don't know, what if she already has a name, besides, she's not my crow, she's my friend...

No offence though, that's just a me thing

Gerry is a great crow name

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

That's a valid point

*Michael throws a little bit of kibbles to the crows and decides to small talk a bit*

So whatcha' doing for a living?

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver chuckles at the sudden change of subject* I run a shop in Soho, what about you?

[askoliverbanks]

Ness got anglerfished btw

Does this have to do with the stranger?... Is she alright?

[askoliverbanks]

"Just letting you know, Ness might not be able to send messages for a bit. She's been sick and yeah. She'll survive."

-📼(@a-pizza-the-action-97)

Send her my regards, I hope she gets well soon...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I will. I'm Cass, by the way. I'm Ness' girlfriend."

[askoliverbanks]

Nice to meet you Cass, are you also being bothered by some of the fears?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Nice to meet you too. Yup. Web-marked; Agony-marked, weird one that is a whole story; and Eye-aligned."

[askoliverbanks]

Agony?... What's that? The desolation?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I wish. The name isn't even fitting. It's just what the jackass decided to call itself. Man turned eldritch fear entity I don't know."

[askoliverbanks]

You're telling me there are more than 14 fears out there?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Yeah. Maybe not 16 where you are but, pretty sure you still got the 15th"

[askoliverbanks]

I didn't know there was a 15th fear...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Huh. I mean, it is a newer one. Smirke didn't write about it. The Extinction is number 15, which I'm sure a lot of people just shrug it off as one of the others, especially the End. Maybe was a part of the End at one point. It's the fear of catastrophic change and well, the end of humanity. Which makes sense, I mean just the fear around things like climate change is CRAZY"

[askoliverbanks]

Yeah, it makes sense they put that in another category. So, the extinction covers the fear of events that are actually a consequence of humanity's wrongs. Did I get it right?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I'd say that's about right. There aren't many avatars, but I do know one. She's friendly, and actually is one of Ness' sisters. Wren Ramao."

[askoliverbanks]

I would be nice to meet her, knowing about a new entity really sparks my interest

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

//@wren-of-the-flock

[wren-of-the-flock]

hellooooooo dream boy. Our entities are cousins

[askoliverbanks]

How come you knew about me and I didn't know about you?

Nice to meet you Wren

[wren-of-the-flock]

couple statements bought you. I keep stealing them from the archive when i’m bored

[askoliverbanks]

That's such a flex, I can't even step near the institute without feeling observed. In what statements though? I only remember giving one, under a fake name

[wren-of-the-flock]

Eye can’t see you in the tunnels. Also the one with grifter’s bone.

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh... I remember her, at least she lived long enough to give a statement

[wren-of-the-flock]

nice. Went to the worlds worst concert and survived.

[askoliverbanks]

Maybe it was the world's best concert, but we'll never know *he smiles*

Something tells me you do know this, but you share names with a tiny songbird

[wren-of-the-flock]

fits with my crow motif

do you know they have merch? Grifters bone I mean

[askoliverbanks]

I suppose that they do that to attract more careless people to their shows

[wren-of-the-flock]

I think Gerry has one

[askoliverbanks]

That sounds something like Gerry would do

[wren-of-the-flock]

yeah he wears it around the archives sometimes- wait you know him?

[askoliverbanks]

I... I talked to him once or twice and I've heard a lot about him... So yes and no at the same time

[askoliverbanks]

*familiar, rather nostalgic knocking, but not on the window. Sound comes low, from the door. Crow sits on the perch, looking up. Nothing changed, except for a few stray feathers, curled as if by haircurler*

@curiouscrowseverywhere

Friend *he looks at her and laughs a little, then pet's her* how was the distortion? Did you enjoy your trip through the corridors?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird caws and jumps between his legs, inside the shops. When she shakes off, few feathers fall out. They're still black, but tinged as if with gasoline spill. Wet wrap on her wing is still intact*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver picks up the fallen feathers and puts them on the table.* You look very fancy

I had your last visit to the vet scheduled for yesterday, but if you want I could call the guy and tell him we're going now

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird walks up to his feet and stomps on Oliver's boots. Looks like somebody is up to a vet ride*

[askoliverbanks]

Something tells me you want me to call the guy

*he does the call and helps her climb up to his shoulder. They go to the tube and ignore the weird looks they got from people. When they arrive at their stop, they walk a few blocks and enter the center. The vet welcomes them, checks the crow's wing and smiles. He says that her wing has healed nicely and now she only needed to practice to regain her ability to fly.

With that premise, instead of going back to the shop, they went to the nearest park*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is happy and active. On the way to the park she either looks around at the people or tries to groom Oliver's hair. When they arrive, she expects for him to lower her on the ground. Her little stick-like legs stomp impatiently on his shoulder*

[askoliverbanks]

*instead of lowering her down, he looks for a tree and finds one with a branch that isn't too high to reach, he lets her there* I've got an idea so you can move those wings a little more. I'll stand over there, just a few steps back, and you've got to jump towards me

How does that sound?

I'll catch you, don't worry about it, and... I've got some berries here *he smiles while he takes out a Ziploc bag with strawberries and blueberries, the vet gave it to him*

If you don't like the idea *he puts his hand in front of her* I'll get you off there and we'll try another thing

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird turned around on the branch to face Oliver. She tilts her head left and right, listening to the man. Blinked a few times looking at the zip with goodies. Well, why not engage. She stretches, flapping wings and then jumps, glides from branch to hand. She then runs up to man's shoulder and caws*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver smiles and gives her a strawberry, then grabs one for himself* What if now I stand a little further? *He picks her up and leaves her on the same branch, then stands two steps further from it. Since he did that without looking, he almost tripped with a bench. He laughs it off and straightens up* I know you can do it

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird cawed when he tripped, as if chuckling at him. She then jumped off the branch. Sje flapped wings and flew to the Oliver. A bit uneven, but it worked. She landed on his shoulder, spreading wings as if proud of herself*

[askoliverbanks]

One more time and we'll play something else *he gives her a blueberry and puts her back on the branch. Then, he stands in the same spot as before*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*she caws loudly. Flaps wings, jumps and flies up on his head. She nibbles on his hair*

[askoliverbanks]

*He laughs* Have the whole bag, you really deserve it *he opens the Ziploc bag and lifts it near her*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow puts her whole head inside the bag. quickly gobbles some berries and then jumps down on his shoulder. she climbs forward, looking into his face and blinking. wonder what other games he has prepared*

[askoliverbanks]

Friend, I did some research... and I need to show you something. *He walks around the park, like he's searching something. He stops walking when he sees that at one of the trees there are three crows, looking at them with curiosity. In the ground near a bench, there are two more* Avoiding that lady was one of the reasons we came to this park, but there's another thing, I found in a forum that a murder of crows was bothering the neighbours here... They say they're friendly if bring the right offerings *he chuckles as he puts the berries bag in the ground, without disturbing the other crows. The crows start approaching.* Do you want to go play with them?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is quiet. she listens to Oliver and eyes other crows. She flies down to the ground. Other two that were approaching stopped. She walked over to the bag and ate couple of berries out of it. When bird finally walked up to her she just stood there, watching. They immediately went for the berries, making soft sounds. Bird wasn't engaging for a while but then also started jumping near others.*

*while Oliver watched, somebody approached him. weird man, all in pink clothes stopped near him, also watching birds*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver glanced at the man* Hi, are you also here for the crows?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

M?

*man looks up at Oliver*

Oh, yeah. Fascinating birds. You also a fan?

*he smiles and takes out a bag of bird goodies. dryed bugs and all. he takes a step forward and places it beside the berry bag. birds get spooked, flying a few steps away, but then return, examining snacks*

[askoliverbanks]

I've got a friend, I don't know if she belonged to a murder of crows, but crows are highly sociable animals, so I brought her

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

You're friends with a crow? That's very cool. And cute. May i ask how you two met?

*he looks around and sits on the bench, gesturing for Oliver to sit near him*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver sits beside the man* One day she knocked on my window *he smiles*

Where did you get those treats? I've only found packs of dried mealworms, but that doesn't look really tasty, honestly.

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Ah, i have a friend at wildlife rescue center.

*he puts his hand inside his jacket and pulls out a zip bag with bird treats*

Here, you can have it. I have plenty on me. And, about mealworms, they don't look really tasty to you, pal

*he smiles*

[askoliverbanks]

Thanks, how much do I owe you?

And, well yeah, you're right, but maybe my crow friend is a picky eater *he laughs to himself* To be honest, I'm just making up excuses, I'll get her some mealworms too

Hang on, you said you have a friend at a wildlife rescue centre? What's their name? I've been going to one rescue center nearby, maybe I know them

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*he winks and smiles.*

Oh just take it, i don't mind at all. But next pack will be three dollars

*man scratches his beard, also dyed in pink*

Oh, he's Tim. Nice lad. I guess you were there because of your lil friend, am i right?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm

She got hurt, I don't know how, but she came to me and I tried to help her as best as I could.

Now she's alright, almost. She's still regaining her wing strength and ability to fly

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Happy to hear that. Being friends with corvids is beautiful thing

*he smiles as couple of black crows waddle towards him. Pink man takes out few dried kibbles out of his pocket and lowers his hand with the treats to the ground. The crows immediately jump up, destroying the pieces in a couple of seconds*

[askoliverbanks]

I can tell that you say that from experience

Can I ask what happened to your crow friend or friends?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

One day i found crow chick in my yard. I helped it go get back into the nest, and after i started to feed them and help with what i can

*he sat up, and one old crow flew up on the bench, sitting beside man. He took out a bit of treats again and offered to the bird*

[askoliverbanks]

That's so nice, did you ever get to see that chick again?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

If i'm correct it's right there. Called him Gerry

*man smiles, giving head scraches to a big crow beside him*

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh *he smiles too* would it bother him if I pet him?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

That's only up to him

*guy laughs and puts his hand away*

[askoliverbanks]

*he chuckles and nods, then puts his hand in front of the bird* hey Gerry, can I pet you?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*at first he varily pulled away, but after inspecting Oliver's hand, crow allows light scratches*

[askoliverbanks]

Thank you Gerry, nice to meet you *He opens the zip bag the guy gave him and offers some to the bird*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow enthusiastically takes treats, as man watches with a smile*

You are good with birds

[askoliverbanks]

I'm glad to hear that, thank you, I try my best

Before befriending a crow, I didn't know anything about them

Can you believe I only gave her berries?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Hah! I can, actually. They are not very picky

[askoliverbanks]

Lucky me they aren't *he smiles*

I think I didn't present myself

I'm Oliver, and my friend is right over there *he points to crow*

What's your name?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

I'm Michael

*man also smiles. he looks over at the crow*

You didn't came up with a name for her?

[askoliverbanks]

Uh... No... Who am I to give her a name? I don't know, what if she already has a name, besides, she's not my crow, she's my friend...

No offence though, that's just a me thing

Gerry is a great crow name

[not-that-spider-girl]

//amusement park! cont.

Mhm... Now that I know that, I think I have some books you could like. I'll give them to you if I find them

In the meantime, we've got a vast amount of options to do. In some ways, this is an adventure... So, what should we do next?

Explore the deep caves of the underground world; go and find what the deep sea awaits for us; look up into the sky and see the universe from within it, or we could do nothing, it's your choice adventurer *he says with a playful tone.*

- @askoliverbanks

[she laughs]

I’ve always wanted to see the ocean. You must know a lot about it, I bet.

[she grins]

Which page should I turn to?

[askoliverbanks]

The page where we go to the pirates rollercoaster *he chuckles. Then, he helps Ana get off the chair* but adventurer, we must run because the sun is setting and the crowd is reuniting. If we get there on time, we'll be able to finish our quest without any trouble

Are you ready?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana giggles and salutes Oliver]

Yes sir!

[she deftly begins weaving through the crowd towards the coaster, occasionally checking over her shoulder to make sure Oliver is still there]

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver follows her closely. The ride's description reads: "a fun ride for everyone over 7 years old! Feel the mist and a splash of water as you go through the sharp turns of the Niagara river and down the Amazon falls" Oliver reads it and laughs at the mistake in the description. The line when they got there was about 6 persons long, so they got up in no time. He sets the lap bar and smiles at Ana* We did it adventurer, ready to embark towards the seven seas *The ride begins and Oliver has to stop the act*

I didn't think it would start so soon *he chortles*

[not-that-spider-girl]

Well, they have to be quick to get all the way across the Americas, right?

[Ana grabs the bar as they go over the first hill, then cheers]

THIS IS AMAZING!!

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver nods and laughs. The ride gets slower as they reach a bigger hill* And it seems like that isn't the best part of the ride *the rollercoaster stops moving at the top for some seconds, then abruptly starts. They get splashed with water when they get to the base of the hill*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana squeals and instinctively covers her face, laughing through a tight turn]

[askoliverbanks]

*The ride starts slowing down and enters a tunnel, the walls of it are screens that show videos of an aquarium. Oliver swipes his face with his sleeve* Now, that was fun *he chuckles, evens up his breathing and then looks around* the ride is prettier than I thought, very relaxing too

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana looks around and waves at a manta ray]

This is really cool. I wonder where the —

[she’s cut off by a sudden drop into darkness as the car is 'swallowed' by an incoming shark. Oliver hears a sharp inhale and Ana’s hand clutching his arm]

[askoliverbanks]

*he holds her hand* hey, it's okay, it doesn't mean harm, and if it did, I wouldn't let it hurt you *some fog machines activate and now the screens show bioluminescent sea creatures* sometimes scary things are not as bad as they seem *as the car approaches the end of the tunnel, it starts to accelerate*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana nods shakily and watches a jellyfish float by. Her free hand absentmindedly traces patterns in the fog.]

Some prey animals get big when they’re scared, to try to scare predators away so the prey can escape.

[askoliverbanks]

Nature is so mesmerising... *the car gets out of the tunnel and abruptly stops at the end of the ride, splashing them with water again. Oliver chuckles.

They get out of the ride. It looks like it's going to rain*

I think we should go to the souvenir shop and get some dry clothes, it's freezing cold out here

*the rain starts* ...never mind

Did you consider my offer?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana hesitates]

…Are you sure you wouldn’t mind? I really don’t want to be a bother.

I would like to come with you, though, if that’s okay.

[askoliverbanks]

It's absolutely okay Ana

We'll go to a convenience store to buy some marshmallows for the hot chocolate

*They get out of the amusement park and quickly get to the nearest tube station. Oliver buys a travelcard for Ana*

Have you ever used the tube before?

[not-that-spider-girl]

Thank you.

[Ana’s quiet, and her expression change is subtle, but she’s clearly relieved.]

I haven’t. Is it just like that?

[she points to where people are tapping in and out of the turnstiles]

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm, then we wait, the ride is just like a rollercoaster one, just without the height shift. I'm sure you'll like it *he smiled and crossed the turnstile, then looked back at Ana* Oh right, you've got to place your travelcard there, forgot to mention it. Want me to go help you?

[not-that-spider-girl]

It’s okay, let me try first.

[Ana watches another person go through a turnstile and mimics them, successfully making it through. She smiles at Oliver.]

Got it! Where are we going?

[askoliverbanks]

*He walks towards a map that indicates all the stops and points towards one* Right here, that's two blocks from my place

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she nods and looks around the station to find the right direction]

That way, right?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm. You figured it out very quickly *he smiles*, I usually mess it up and then I have to run to the other entrance *the train arrives and the doors open, some people get off of it* Quick, choose one of the doors

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana pretend-gasps]

Oh no! Decisions!

[she leads Oliver to a door; the car is standing room only. She winces slightly]

Ah…oops. Sorry.

[askoliverbanks]

No worries, besides, this way you'll get the full "London Underground" experience *he says while they enter. The doors close. Oliver holds one of the handrails* Now dear passenger, for your safety, hold onto the handrail. Beware of pickpocketing and take care of your valuable items. We'll be at our stop in no time

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana holds onto a handrail and sticks her other hand in a pocket, rolling around various trinkets. She laughs]

I don’t have much worth taking, anyway.

[she looks around the car with interest as it accelerates]

[askoliverbanks]

Did you happen to read anything about the London underground?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she shrugs]

Nothing I remember, besides it being popular with tourists. History books are hard to carry and usually hard to reach. Why, is it really cool?

[askoliverbanks]

Not really. The first one opened in 1860ish, but the ones that could be considered the foundation of what the tube is today didn't open until the 1900s. In the 30s, they were planning to improve the services, but, you know, WWII. The Victoria line opened in the 60s and the Jubilee one in the 70s. I think the network has 11 lines nowadays.

[not-that-spider-girl]

Do you just know all of that? It’s impressive, I don’t know how anyone remembers dates.

Imagine how lonely they must be, watching people’s lives go by every day for years and years and one day they’re just not there anymore? And all these little pieces of people’s lives briefly meeting in a single vehicle... I mean, the stories must be amazing.

[askoliverbanks]

I could teach you my memorization techniques *he laughs to himself a bit, he doesn't really have any*

If trains could talk... *He smiles. The train gets to their stop and they get off the train* Now... I think we've got to go that way. Shall we make it a race? The first one to get out of the station wins

[not-that-spider-girl]

Hmm…deal.

[Ana grins and dashes towards the exit]

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver gives her a head start and takes a moment to take a deep breath. He runs his hand through his hair and then runs towards the exit. Ana gets out first.

When Oliver gets there, he acts like he's exhausted, but smiles, grabs a pen he has to serve as a fake microphone, and then starts talking like an announcer.* Claps for the greatest adventurer, she just won the... "Tube race" with an outstanding speed. Now the real question is, what shall the winner ask for her price? We are here with Ana to tell us *He hands her the pen*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana twirls the pen before answering]

Hmm… eternal glory in the halls of kings?

[she smiles and holds a hand out]

It was race run most honourably, Mister Banks.

[askoliverbanks]

Fairly played *he bows*

Lady Ana, thou shall be remembered for the outcome of this race if that's what thou desires. The generations to come will admire your incredible abilities

Let's go my lady, we've got a whole journey ahead of us

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she nods solemnly]

And all things are as they ought to be.

[she starts walking in the general direction of Oliver’s shop, then pauses]

It is this way, right?

[askoliverbanks]

Yes, we're going to turn right in a couple of blocks and we'll arrive to our first destination. What would you like to buy? I was thinking marshmallows and some frozen waffles

[not-that-spider-girl]

Oh, uh — could we get some Maltesers?

[the question caught Ana off guard; she’s not used to being offered choices]

[askoliverbanks]

Of course, those are very tasty

I was picking what to buy and I didn't ask you if you liked waffles or hot chocolate with marshmallows. Tell me if you don't like that meal plan and we'll figure out what else we could eat

[not-that-spider-girl]

Nono, that sounds really nice. Thank you. It’s just a little different, that’s all.

[Ana pauses at an intersection and looks to Oliver]

Here?

[askoliverbanks]

*he looks around and nods. From time to time, he seems a bit lost, even though he has made that route thousands of times* If it's a little different, can I ask what you usually eat?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[her pace slows, and she suddenly seems a bit lost herself]

I…I don’t remember. I do — I did. I must have.

[askoliverbanks]

It's okay... It's not really relevant now, we better think about what we're going to eat the waffles with. Maybe maple syrup, chocolate syrup, butter, uhhh *they arrive at the store and Oliver opens the door for Ana, then they both enter* okay, first let's find where those waffles are hiding

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana nods and creeps through the grocery store, ‘sneaking up’ on the frozen foods section]

Shhh…I think I found them.

[askoliverbanks]

There they are... Mystical creatures, aren't they? *Oliver tries not to laugh while he opens the refrigerated cabinet slowly and grabs one of the waffle boxes, quickly reads the label then moves it a bit, as if trying to make it look like the box was alive* I think it's trying to escape... Catch it Ana, don't let it go *He says with a playful voice as he tosses the box at Ana, a bit carefully, so he doesn't hit her with it. He grabs one of the store's shopping baskets that was nearby* Quickly, put it here, we can't let it run away

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana almost drops the box, mutters something about 'cool spider powers,' and stashes it in a basket, glowering at it resentfully]

Tricksy. Evil. Slippery is for fish.

[askoliverbanks]

Truly evil, it almost escapes, great job catching it *he gave Ana a fist bump* I think that move is worth a Spiderman suit... Who knows? *He smiles*

Now, what's next on the list?... Marshmallows

There are a lot of species of marshmallows, which one is your favourite?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana laughs and fist-bumps Oliver]

The tiny ones, definitely.

[askoliverbanks]

I'm sure we'll catch some, follow me *he says with enthusiasm and they walk to the candies aisle. When they get there, Oliver whispers* check that side and I'll check this one, those marshmallows tend to be very sneaky

[askoliverbanks]

have you ever been buried alive before? just curious

- bee / @a-thousand-little-things

Luckily, no

What about you?

[a-thousand-little-things]

oh. huh. yeah, i have

[askoliverbanks]

Was that related to your becoming?

[a-thousand-little-things]

…sorta? ish? i mean— it wasn’t instrumental, but it did happen.

[askoliverbanks]

Touched by the burried, that's a mark I'm missing

Was it a bad experience?

[a-thousand-little-things]

i mean… it was okay. i wasn’t really conscious for it? you know that like— coma-like state someone is in before they decide whether or not to become an avatar? that’s what i was in.

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm... Did you already know your friends back then?

[not-that-spider-girl]

//amusement park! cont.

Mhm... Now that I know that, I think I have some books you could like. I'll give them to you if I find them

In the meantime, we've got a vast amount of options to do. In some ways, this is an adventure... So, what should we do next?

Explore the deep caves of the underground world; go and find what the deep sea awaits for us; look up into the sky and see the universe from within it, or we could do nothing, it's your choice adventurer *he says with a playful tone.*

- @askoliverbanks

[she laughs]

I’ve always wanted to see the ocean. You must know a lot about it, I bet.

[she grins]

Which page should I turn to?

[askoliverbanks]

The page where we go to the pirates rollercoaster *he chuckles. Then, he helps Ana get off the chair* but adventurer, we must run because the sun is setting and the crowd is reuniting. If we get there on time, we'll be able to finish our quest without any trouble

Are you ready?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana giggles and salutes Oliver]

Yes sir!

[she deftly begins weaving through the crowd towards the coaster, occasionally checking over her shoulder to make sure Oliver is still there]

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver follows her closely. The ride's description reads: "a fun ride for everyone over 7 years old! Feel the mist and a splash of water as you go through the sharp turns of the Niagara river and down the Amazon falls" Oliver reads it and laughs at the mistake in the description. The line when they got there was about 6 persons long, so they got up in no time. He sets the lap bar and smiles at Ana* We did it adventurer, ready to embark towards the seven seas *The ride begins and Oliver has to stop the act*

I didn't think it would start so soon *he chortles*

[not-that-spider-girl]

Well, they have to be quick to get all the way across the Americas, right?

[Ana grabs the bar as they go over the first hill, then cheers]

THIS IS AMAZING!!

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver nods and laughs. The ride gets slower as they reach a bigger hill* And it seems like that isn't the best part of the ride *the rollercoaster stops moving at the top for some seconds, then abruptly starts. They get splashed with water when they get to the base of the hill*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana squeals and instinctively covers her face, laughing through a tight turn]

[askoliverbanks]

*The ride starts slowing down and enters a tunnel, the walls of it are screens that show videos of an aquarium. Oliver swipes his face with his sleeve* Now, that was fun *he chuckles, evens up his breathing and then looks around* the ride is prettier than I thought, very relaxing too

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana looks around and waves at a manta ray]

This is really cool. I wonder where the —

[she’s cut off by a sudden drop into darkness as the car is 'swallowed' by an incoming shark. Oliver hears a sharp inhale and Ana’s hand clutching his arm]

[askoliverbanks]

*he holds her hand* hey, it's okay, it doesn't mean harm, and if it did, I wouldn't let it hurt you *some fog machines activate and now the screens show bioluminescent sea creatures* sometimes scary things are not as bad as they seem *as the car approaches the end of the tunnel, it starts to accelerate*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana nods shakily and watches a jellyfish float by. Her free hand absentmindedly traces patterns in the fog.]

Some prey animals get big when they’re scared, to try to scare predators away so the prey can escape.

[askoliverbanks]

Nature is so mesmerising... *the car gets out of the tunnel and abruptly stops at the end of the ride, splashing them with water again. Oliver chuckles.

They get out of the ride. It looks like it's going to rain*

I think we should go to the souvenir shop and get some dry clothes, it's freezing cold out here

*the rain starts* ...never mind

Did you consider my offer?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana hesitates]

…Are you sure you wouldn’t mind? I really don’t want to be a bother.

I would like to come with you, though, if that’s okay.

[askoliverbanks]

It's absolutely okay Ana

We'll go to a convenience store to buy some marshmallows for the hot chocolate

*They get out of the amusement park and quickly get to the nearest tube station. Oliver buys a travelcard for Ana*

Have you ever used the tube before?

[not-that-spider-girl]

Thank you.

[Ana’s quiet, and her expression change is subtle, but she’s clearly relieved.]

I haven’t. Is it just like that?

[she points to where people are tapping in and out of the turnstiles]

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm, then we wait, the ride is just like a rollercoaster one, just without the height shift. I'm sure you'll like it *he smiled and crossed the turnstile, then looked back at Ana* Oh right, you've got to place your travelcard there, forgot to mention it. Want me to go help you?

[not-that-spider-girl]

It’s okay, let me try first.

[Ana watches another person go through a turnstile and mimics them, successfully making it through. She smiles at Oliver.]

Got it! Where are we going?

[askoliverbanks]

*He walks towards a map that indicates all the stops and points towards one* Right here, that's two blocks from my place

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she nods and looks around the station to find the right direction]

That way, right?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm. You figured it out very quickly *he smiles*, I usually mess it up and then I have to run to the other entrance *the train arrives and the doors open, some people get off of it* Quick, choose one of the doors

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana pretend-gasps]

Oh no! Decisions!

[she leads Oliver to a door; the car is standing room only. She winces slightly]

Ah…oops. Sorry.

[askoliverbanks]

No worries, besides, this way you'll get the full "London Underground" experience *he says while they enter. The doors close. Oliver holds one of the handrails* Now dear passenger, for your safety, hold onto the handrail. Beware of pickpocketing and take care of your valuable items. We'll be at our stop in no time

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana holds onto a handrail and sticks her other hand in a pocket, rolling around various trinkets. She laughs]

I don’t have much worth taking, anyway.

[she looks around the car with interest as it accelerates]

[askoliverbanks]

Did you happen to read anything about the London underground?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she shrugs]

Nothing I remember, besides it being popular with tourists. History books are hard to carry and usually hard to reach. Why, is it really cool?

[askoliverbanks]

Not really. The first one opened in 1860ish, but the ones that could be considered the foundation of what the tube is today didn't open until the 1900s. In the 30s, they were planning to improve the services, but, you know, WWII. The Victoria line opened in the 60s and the Jubilee one in the 70s. I think the network has 11 lines nowadays.

[not-that-spider-girl]

Do you just know all of that? It’s impressive, I don’t know how anyone remembers dates.

Imagine how lonely they must be, watching people’s lives go by every day for years and years and one day they’re just not there anymore? And all these little pieces of people’s lives briefly meeting in a single vehicle... I mean, the stories must be amazing.

[askoliverbanks]

I could teach you my memorization techniques *he laughs to himself a bit, he doesn't really have any*

If trains could talk... *He smiles. The train gets to their stop and they get off the train* Now... I think we've got to go that way. Shall we make it a race? The first one to get out of the station wins

[not-that-spider-girl]

Hmm…deal.

[Ana grins and dashes towards the exit]

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver gives her a head start and takes a moment to take a deep breath. He runs his hand through his hair and then runs towards the exit. Ana gets out first.

When Oliver gets there, he acts like he's exhausted, but smiles, grabs a pen he has to serve as a fake microphone, and then starts talking like an announcer.* Claps for the greatest adventurer, she just won the... "Tube race" with an outstanding speed. Now the real question is, what shall the winner ask for her price? We are here with Ana to tell us *He hands her the pen*

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana twirls the pen before answering]

Hmm… eternal glory in the halls of kings?

[she smiles and holds a hand out]

It was race run most honourably, Mister Banks.

[askoliverbanks]

Fairly played *he bows*

Lady Ana, thou shall be remembered for the outcome of this race if that's what thou desires. The generations to come will admire your incredible abilities

Let's go my lady, we've got a whole journey ahead of us

[not-that-spider-girl]

[she nods solemnly]

And all things are as they ought to be.

[she starts walking in the general direction of Oliver’s shop, then pauses]

It is this way, right?

[askoliverbanks]

Yes, we're going to turn right in a couple of blocks and we'll arrive to our first destination. What would you like to buy? I was thinking marshmallows and some frozen waffles

[not-that-spider-girl]

Oh, uh — could we get some Maltesers?

[the question caught Ana off guard; she’s not used to being offered choices]

[askoliverbanks]

Of course, those are very tasty

I was picking what to buy and I didn't ask you if you liked waffles or hot chocolate with marshmallows. Tell me if you don't like that meal plan and we'll figure out what else we could eat

[not-that-spider-girl]

Nono, that sounds really nice. Thank you. It’s just a little different, that’s all.

[Ana pauses at an intersection and looks to Oliver]

Here?

[askoliverbanks]

*he looks around and nods. From time to time, he seems a bit lost, even though he has made that route thousands of times* If it's a little different, can I ask what you usually eat?

[not-that-spider-girl]

[her pace slows, and she suddenly seems a bit lost herself]

I…I don’t remember. I do — I did. I must have.

[askoliverbanks]

It's okay... It's not really relevant now, we better think about what we're going to eat the waffles with. Maybe maple syrup, chocolate syrup, butter, uhhh *they arrive at the store and Oliver opens the door for Ana, then they both enter* okay, first let's find where those waffles are hiding

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana nods and creeps through the grocery store, ‘sneaking up’ on the frozen foods section]

Shhh…I think I found them.

[askoliverbanks]

There they are... Mystical creatures, aren't they? *Oliver tries not to laugh while he opens the refrigerated cabinet slowly and grabs one of the waffle boxes, quickly reads the label then moves it a bit, as if trying to make it look like the box was alive* I think it's trying to escape... Catch it Ana, don't let it go *He says with a playful voice as he tosses the box at Ana, a bit carefully, so he doesn't hit her with it. He grabs one of the store's shopping baskets that was nearby* Quickly, put it here, we can't let it run away

[not-that-spider-girl]

[Ana almost drops the box, mutters something about 'cool spider powers,' and stashes it in a basket, glowering at it resentfully]

Tricksy. Evil. Slippery is for fish.

[askoliverbanks]

Truly evil, it almost escapes, great job catching it *he gave Ana a fist bump* I think that move is worth a Spiderman suit... Who knows? *He smiles*

Now, what's next on the list?... Marshmallows

There are a lot of species of marshmallows, which one is your favourite?

[askoliverbanks]

iT'S bEeN a wHILe, hM¿

h0W aRE tHinGS¿ %)

- @tw1sty-b1tch

Michael, hi

Things are going fine, what about you?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sAMe hERe¡ p0SsiBLy¡ aS fINe aS tHINgs cAN bE wHEn y0U'Re maDnESs 'pErs0N'iFiEd¡

[askoliverbanks]

That's good to hear, seems like you're as dramatic as always *he scoffs* want something to drink? I've got tea, and coffee, and plain water

*While he waits for an answer he opens a drawer and takes out a box* I saw this and it reminded me of you *he opens the box and takes out a watch that's based on a low score clock drawing test* you didn't have a clock in those corridors the last time I checked, and you didn't have a clock in your wrist either

So, was it a waste of money or do you like it?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

suRE, i suPp0Se¡

i L0vE iT, THaNk y0U iNDeED¡!

[askoliverbanks]

Wait, really? That's great

*He gives Michael the watch and goes to bring two cups of tea* How do you like your tea, with or without milk?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N'T pARtIcULaRlY mINd¡!

[askoliverbanks]

With milk then,

So what have you been up to? Anything new with your corridors?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tHE USuAL¡ d0Es bEInG rELEnTlESsLY hARaSsED bY s0ME s0RT 0f wATchEr an0N c0uNT¿?

[askoliverbanks]

It does count, I hope that anon gets what they deserve at the end of the day *he chuckles softly* They didn't damage you a lot, did they? *He mixes up the tea in both cups and gives one to Michael*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

f0R a bEINg 0F LIes SUcH aS mYSeLF¿? tELliNG tHE tRUtH iS.. rATheR iNt0LeraBlE. sTILl, i'M HArdLY g0InG t0 lET s0Me 0VER pERsIStEnT aRcHivISt weAR mE d0wN¡

[askoliverbanks]

That's a great mindset, specially because something tells me that the eye loves messing with you, or vise versa, either way, I'm on your side

Watchers have an advantage when it comes to compulsion

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNDeEd tHEY d0¡

n0W, eN0uGh aB0Ut mE¡ wHAT aRE tHiNGs LIkE f0R y0U¿? n0T BEeN cRUsHED bY aNYm0Re sATiLliTEs, i'D h0Pe¿?

[askoliverbanks]

This is going to be a big surprise for you, I've been avoiding satellites *he chuckles*

So, I met some new people, I got a crow friend and I'm probably going to adopt a child.

Talking about the crow, I think we woke her up

Hi friend

// @curiouscrowseverywhere

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird takes her head our from under the wing and shakes off. She looks up at man and the Distortion. Crow jumps down from her post and demands pets from Oliver*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

aN iNTerEstiNG sPeciMeN..

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird turns her head and looks at Michael very closely*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM¿?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow jumps to the edge of the table and looks into coils of Michael's sweater and hair. Then all of a sudden she tries to catch one of moving spirals*

[askoliverbanks]

You don't mind her playing right? *He laughs* she seems to like you

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T aT aLl¡ %D

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird puts her head through one coil of Michael's hair and suddenly gets sucked into Distortion's dimensional body*

//bye bye birdie

//not forever dont worry

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver looks at Michael* That was... Unexpected... Uh... It may be much to ask but, please make sure she gets back safely. I really can't tell if she did that on purpose

*he sighs, looking a bit worried*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0 hARm wILl c0mE t0 hER, d0N't w0Rry

[askoliverbanks]

*He sighs in relief* Thank you

She likes to roam around and find trinkets

The other day we found rodent skulls, she also brought me a metal centipede *he smiles*

Having a crow friend is a bliss

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sHE s0uNDs LIkE a dELighT %)

[askoliverbanks]

She really is, does it feel the same as having that alligator in your corridors?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tHE aLliGat0R f0uNd a wAY t0.. fUSe inT0 tHe cArpET s0mEh0W, s0 n0T enTirElY¡

[askoliverbanks]

It still gives you company, but I'm guessing it's a different kind of bond since, in some way, it's part of you

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i SUpp0Se s0¡!

[askoliverbanks]

I wanted to ask you, if I didn't serve the end... Do you think I'd serve the spiral?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

wHERE iS tHIs c0mINg fR0m, mIGht i aSK¿?

[askoliverbanks]

I've been overthinking a bit, and I've been dreaming too... Nevermind, it's a stupid question, we should live in the present. There's no point in asking about what ifs

[tw1sty-b1tch]

tRUE¡! buT stILl, i d0 hAVE mY d0uBTs tHAT y0U w0uLD.

[askoliverbanks]

I'm guessing my fear is too tasty to go to waste *he laughs* what about you? If you weren't the distortion, who would you be? Just Michael?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM. i d0 sUPP0SE MichAEl w0ULd g0 0n bEiNg mIcHaEl, sTILl suRr0uNdED bY th0Se iDi0T wAtchErS. mAyBe hE'd diE gRuS0MelY iN s0Me 0tHer wAY, th0uGh, iT w0uLdn'T bE uNc0mM0n f0R aN aRchIvAL ASsiStANT.

[askoliverbanks]

That would've been the best case scenario for the spiral. Now I do get why you're not especially fond of the eye. I used to think it was because the eye and the spiral are kind of opposites.

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T aS 0Pp0sITES aS sAY.. t0o cL0Se i CaNn0T bReatHE aNd tHE FALiNg tITaN, bUt hArDLy c0MpaTiBLe. iT JuSt hAPpeNs t0 bE rAtHer pErs0NaL, iN mY cASE.

[askoliverbanks]

*he nods*

Pain is the easiest feeling to remember and you probably have twice as many memories to hold onto.

Would you prefer not to be Michael?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

..iNDeeD. i nEVer wAnTED t0 bE MIchaEL. hAvINg t0 wEAR y0UR gREaTEsT fAILuRE aS tHe fiBRe 0F y0uR bEinG..¿? eVEN bEf0Re i c0uLd wANt, iT wAsN'T a fATe i DEsiREd.

[askoliverbanks]

I wish I could help you with your whole "I'm the personification of an identity crisis" thing... Is there any way I can help?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

n0T thAt i'M awARe 0F, bESiDeS, i'M fiNE¡! i D0n'T nEeD aNY hELp, i aSsuRe y0U

[askoliverbanks]

Okay Goldilocks, I'm only going to say that even whats need help sometimes.

[tw1sty-b1tch]

g0LdiL0cKs-¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm, Goldilocks *he takes a sip of his tea, trying not to laugh*

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N't sEeM t0 f0Ll0W¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Really? You don't know who Goldilocks is?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

sh0uLD i¿?

[askoliverbanks]

Not really, I assumed you knew

There's this children's fairy tale called Goldilocks and the three bears. In one of the versions, Goldilocks is a mischievous blonde girl with curly hair

I thought it would be funny to call you that, but only if you knew who Goldilocks was beforehand

[tw1sty-b1tch]

hM, iT sEeMS fITtINg iN thAT REgaRD¡! %)

[askoliverbanks]

Since we agree, can I call you that occasionally?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

inDEeD y0u mAY¡!

[askoliverbanks]

*He smiles* Okay then *He takes a look at Michael's tea* do you want more?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNDEeD s0¡!

[askoliverbanks]

I'll go make some more, what's your favourite kind of tea? Mine is Earl Grey

Pretty basic, I know

[tw1sty-b1tch]

i d0N't bELieVe i hAve mUCh 0f a PReFerENcE, h0nEStLy

[askoliverbanks]

Really?? So I could dump all the tea I've got here in your cup and you wouldn't mind?

[tw1sty-b1tch]

mY sENse 0F tAStE iS.. n0T eXaCtlY h0W iT'S mEanT t0 bE.

[askoliverbanks]

Nothing about you is exactly how it's "meant" to be, but in a good way

Oh, look, I made a tiny list about nice traits the fears have *he takes out a folded piece of paper from his pocket, grabs a pen, writes something at the end of it, and starts reading*

The eye is perceptive, the web is organised, the dark has an amazing spatial awareness, the hunt is perseverant, the stranger is authentic and the spiral is unique

[tw1sty-b1tch]

iNtErEstiNg¡! miGhT i eNQuiRE aS t0 wHY y0U mADe thIs¿?

[askoliverbanks]

As a reminder

I don't want to forget that you can always find brightness, if you know where to look

[tw1sty-b1tch]

aWFuLly 0PtiMiStiC 0F y0U, hM¿?

[askoliverbanks]

You could say that, or you could say I'm brilliant for thinking about making this list

*he laughs* I'm kidding, I'm no genius, and I know it's silly, but it happens to lighten me up when I feel guilty for being a serial killer

[askoliverbanks]

*familiar, rather nostalgic knocking, but not on the window. Sound comes low, from the door. Crow sits on the perch, looking up. Nothing changed, except for a few stray feathers, curled as if by haircurler*

@curiouscrowseverywhere

Friend *he looks at her and laughs a little, then pet's her* how was the distortion? Did you enjoy your trip through the corridors?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird caws and jumps between his legs, inside the shops. When she shakes off, few feathers fall out. They're still black, but tinged as if with gasoline spill. Wet wrap on her wing is still intact*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver picks up the fallen feathers and puts them on the table.* You look very fancy

I had your last visit to the vet scheduled for yesterday, but if you want I could call the guy and tell him we're going now

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird walks up to his feet and stomps on Oliver's boots. Looks like somebody is up to a vet ride*

[askoliverbanks]

Something tells me you want me to call the guy

*he does the call and helps her climb up to his shoulder. They go to the tube and ignore the weird looks they got from people. When they arrive at their stop, they walk a few blocks and enter the center. The vet welcomes them, checks the crow's wing and smiles. He says that her wing has healed nicely and now she only needed to practice to regain her ability to fly.

With that premise, instead of going back to the shop, they went to the nearest park*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is happy and active. On the way to the park she either looks around at the people or tries to groom Oliver's hair. When they arrive, she expects for him to lower her on the ground. Her little stick-like legs stomp impatiently on his shoulder*

[askoliverbanks]

*instead of lowering her down, he looks for a tree and finds one with a branch that isn't too high to reach, he lets her there* I've got an idea so you can move those wings a little more. I'll stand over there, just a few steps back, and you've got to jump towards me

How does that sound?

I'll catch you, don't worry about it, and... I've got some berries here *he smiles while he takes out a Ziploc bag with strawberries and blueberries, the vet gave it to him*

If you don't like the idea *he puts his hand in front of her* I'll get you off there and we'll try another thing

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird turned around on the branch to face Oliver. She tilts her head left and right, listening to the man. Blinked a few times looking at the zip with goodies. Well, why not engage. She stretches, flapping wings and then jumps, glides from branch to hand. She then runs up to man's shoulder and caws*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver smiles and gives her a strawberry, then grabs one for himself* What if now I stand a little further? *He picks her up and leaves her on the same branch, then stands two steps further from it. Since he did that without looking, he almost tripped with a bench. He laughs it off and straightens up* I know you can do it

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird cawed when he tripped, as if chuckling at him. She then jumped off the branch. Sje flapped wings and flew to the Oliver. A bit uneven, but it worked. She landed on his shoulder, spreading wings as if proud of herself*

[askoliverbanks]

One more time and we'll play something else *he gives her a blueberry and puts her back on the branch. Then, he stands in the same spot as before*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*she caws loudly. Flaps wings, jumps and flies up on his head. She nibbles on his hair*

[askoliverbanks]

*He laughs* Have the whole bag, you really deserve it *he opens the Ziploc bag and lifts it near her*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow puts her whole head inside the bag. quickly gobbles some berries and then jumps down on his shoulder. she climbs forward, looking into his face and blinking. wonder what other games he has prepared*

[askoliverbanks]

Friend, I did some research... and I need to show you something. *He walks around the park, like he's searching something. He stops walking when he sees that at one of the trees there are three crows, looking at them with curiosity. In the ground near a bench, there are two more* Avoiding that lady was one of the reasons we came to this park, but there's another thing, I found in a forum that a murder of crows was bothering the neighbours here... They say they're friendly if bring the right offerings *he chuckles as he puts the berries bag in the ground, without disturbing the other crows. The crows start approaching.* Do you want to go play with them?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*bird is quiet. she listens to Oliver and eyes other crows. She flies down to the ground. Other two that were approaching stopped. She walked over to the bag and ate couple of berries out of it. When bird finally walked up to her she just stood there, watching. They immediately went for the berries, making soft sounds. Bird wasn't engaging for a while but then also started jumping near others.*

*while Oliver watched, somebody approached him. weird man, all in pink clothes stopped near him, also watching birds*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver glanced at the man* Hi, are you also here for the crows?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

M?

*man looks up at Oliver*

Oh, yeah. Fascinating birds. You also a fan?

*he smiles and takes out a bag of bird goodies. dryed bugs and all. he takes a step forward and places it beside the berry bag. birds get spooked, flying a few steps away, but then return, examining snacks*

[askoliverbanks]

I've got a friend, I don't know if she belonged to a murder of crows, but crows are highly sociable animals, so I brought her

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

You're friends with a crow? That's very cool. And cute. May i ask how you two met?

*he looks around and sits on the bench, gesturing for Oliver to sit near him*

[askoliverbanks]

*Oliver sits beside the man* One day she knocked on my window *he smiles*

Where did you get those treats? I've only found packs of dried mealworms, but that doesn't look really tasty, honestly.

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Ah, i have a friend at wildlife rescue center.

*he puts his hand inside his jacket and pulls out a zip bag with bird treats*

Here, you can have it. I have plenty on me. And, about mealworms, they don't look really tasty to you, pal

*he smiles*

[askoliverbanks]

Thanks, how much do I owe you?

And, well yeah, you're right, but maybe my crow friend is a picky eater *he laughs to himself* To be honest, I'm just making up excuses, I'll get her some mealworms too

Hang on, you said you have a friend at a wildlife rescue centre? What's their name? I've been going to one rescue center nearby, maybe I know them

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*he winks and smiles.*

Oh just take it, i don't mind at all. But next pack will be three dollars

*man scratches his beard, also dyed in pink*

Oh, he's Tim. Nice lad. I guess you were there because of your lil friend, am i right?

[askoliverbanks]

Mhm

She got hurt, I don't know how, but she came to me and I tried to help her as best as I could.

Now she's alright, almost. She's still regaining her wing strength and ability to fly

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Happy to hear that. Being friends with corvids is beautiful thing

*he smiles as couple of black crows waddle towards him. Pink man takes out few dried kibbles out of his pocket and lowers his hand with the treats to the ground. The crows immediately jump up, destroying the pieces in a couple of seconds*

[askoliverbanks]

I can tell that you say that from experience

Can I ask what happened to your crow friend or friends?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

One day i found crow chick in my yard. I helped it go get back into the nest, and after i started to feed them and help with what i can

*he sat up, and one old crow flew up on the bench, sitting beside man. He took out a bit of treats again and offered to the bird*

[askoliverbanks]

That's so nice, did you ever get to see that chick again?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

If i'm correct it's right there. Called him Gerry

*man smiles, giving head scraches to a big crow beside him*

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh *he smiles too* would it bother him if I pet him?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

That's only up to him

*guy laughs and puts his hand away*

[askoliverbanks]

*he chuckles and nods, then puts his hand in front of the bird* hey Gerry, can I pet you?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*at first he varily pulled away, but after inspecting Oliver's hand, crow allows light scratches*

[askoliverbanks]

Thank you Gerry, nice to meet you *He opens the zip bag the guy gave him and offers some to the bird*

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

*crow enthusiastically takes treats, as man watches with a smile*

You are good with birds

[askoliverbanks]

I'm glad to hear that, thank you, I try my best

Before befriending a crow, I didn't know anything about them

Can you believe I only gave her berries?

[curiouscrowseverywhere]

Hah! I can, actually. They are not very picky

[askoliverbanks]

Lucky me they aren't *he smiles*

I think I didn't present myself

I'm Oliver, and my friend is right over there *he points to crow*

What's your name?

[askoliverbanks]

"Just letting you know, Ness might not be able to send messages for a bit. She's been sick and yeah. She'll survive."

-📼(@a-pizza-the-action-97)

Send her my regards, I hope she gets well soon...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I will. I'm Cass, by the way. I'm Ness' girlfriend."

[askoliverbanks]

Nice to meet you Cass, are you also being bothered by some of the fears?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Nice to meet you too. Yup. Web-marked; Agony-marked, weird one that is a whole story; and Eye-aligned."

[askoliverbanks]

Agony?... What's that? The desolation?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I wish. The name isn't even fitting. It's just what the jackass decided to call itself. Man turned eldritch fear entity I don't know."

[askoliverbanks]

You're telling me there are more than 14 fears out there?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Yeah. Maybe not 16 where you are but, pretty sure you still got the 15th"

[askoliverbanks]

I didn't know there was a 15th fear...

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"Huh. I mean, it is a newer one. Smirke didn't write about it. The Extinction is number 15, which I'm sure a lot of people just shrug it off as one of the others, especially the End. Maybe was a part of the End at one point. It's the fear of catastrophic change and well, the end of humanity. Which makes sense, I mean just the fear around things like climate change is CRAZY"

[askoliverbanks]

Yeah, it makes sense they put that in another category. So, the extinction covers the fear of events that are actually a consequence of humanity's wrongs. Did I get it right?

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

"I'd say that's about right. There aren't many avatars, but I do know one. She's friendly, and actually is one of Ness' sisters. Wren Ramao."

[askoliverbanks]

I would be nice to meet her, knowing about a new entity really sparks my interest

[a-pizza-the-action-97]

//@wren-of-the-flock

[wren-of-the-flock]

hellooooooo dream boy. Our entities are cousins

[askoliverbanks]

How come you knew about me and I didn't know about you?

Nice to meet you Wren

[wren-of-the-flock]

couple statements bought you. I keep stealing them from the archive when i’m bored

[askoliverbanks]

That's such a flex, I can't even step near the institute without feeling observed. In what statements though? I only remember giving one, under a fake name

[wren-of-the-flock]

Eye can’t see you in the tunnels. Also the one with grifter’s bone.

[askoliverbanks]

Ohhh... I remember her, at least she lived long enough to give a statement

[wren-of-the-flock]

nice. Went to the worlds worst concert and survived.

[askoliverbanks]

Maybe it was the world's best concert, but we'll never know *he smiles*

Something tells me you do know this, but you share names with a tiny songbird

[wren-of-the-flock]

fits with my crow motif

do you know they have merch? Grifters bone I mean

[askoliverbanks]

I suppose that they do that to attract more careless people to their shows

[wren-of-the-flock]

I think Gerry has one

[askoliverbanks]

That sounds something like Gerry would do