will o' the wisp

[charmwisp]

HEY, i think i just saw HOSHINO RIKA walking down the strip. stop by to catch up and you’ll learn the TWENTY-SEVEN YEAR OLD is working as an ARCHIVIST AT THE DEADLY POSSESSIONS HAUNTED MUSEUM and lives in SOLSTICE APARTMENTS. given they are CURIOUS but EVASIVE, it’s unlikely that they ARE NOT a vampire. on the flipside, rumor has it that SHE USED TO RUN A SCAMMY FORTUNE-TELLING BUSINESS WITH A FRIEND IN TOKYO AND WAS FORCED TO FLEE THE COUNTRY BY HERSELF AFTER THEY CROSSED THE WRONG PERSON and it keeps them looking over their shoulder. i bet you can find them tearing up the dance floor to IIN JA NAI by SUZUKI AIRI and you’ll know why they’re called THE CLOSE ENCOUNTER. ( cis woman + she/her. lesbian + pisces. )

the names above are written according to their native japanese format (surname, first name). to clarify, this character's given name is rika!

IMPORTANT LINKS: pinterest.

BASICS

The Kanji for her full name is 星野梨華 and I deliberately incorporated 星 into her name as it means star! Usually surnames don't need to have a meaning so i'm only pointing this out bc it was a creative choice. (btw i know there's a popular anime rn where the protags have the same surname, with the same kanji, but that's a coincidence; i haven't watched the show and i made rika before the manga was even published.)

She may or may not possess some sort of psychic ability. She has experienced visions almost her entire life and has a pretty good knack for predicting the future, even if it’s usually fuzzy and not always accurate. Although she’s quick to dismiss this herself, assuming that she’s just very good at making educated guesses and sensing when trouble is on the horizon, it has gifted her with a lifelong interest in the occult and magic and all similar things.

She grew up in a small city called Minamisatsuma, located in the southernmost region of mainland Japan (Kagoshima), and was always surrounded by the ocean. Alaska's proximity to the coast puts her at ease for this reason, even if the difference in climate has been a big change.

She has a pet cat; a little black cat with with big round eyes and she's called Charmy. She's kind of silly and a bit of a menace. Because Rika doesn't feel safe letting her roam but knows that her apartment isn't quite big enough to expend Charmy's excess energy, she has been known to take her cat on walks with a harness.

She's a bit of a bookworm. A total bookworm, actually. She spent most of her childhood with her nose in a book, mostly stories and fiction but she has been known to spend hours researching topics that interest her. She's got a quick mind and loves to learn. All this extra information has proven quite useful in her cold readings.

Ever the overthinker, Rika has some concerns about the general ethics of her work, especially when it comes to the matter of lying to people (she tries to keep to vague embellishments as best as she can) but it helps to think of herself as a performer. It's all an act and people are encouraged to take from it what they will.

Rika loves horror and all things spooky. Because of her reserved nature, people might expect her to be quite squeamish but she's braver than she looks! That said, she likes cute-spooky best of all. Halloween is easily her favourite time of year and she's been known to go all out when buying decorations; for Rika, it's one of the biggest positives about moving to the States.

In the kitchen space of her apartment, you'll find a corkboard covered with notes and photos and mementos. You'll also find a photograph of a young man (he's Sho, you'll learn about him later!) whose face has been drawn on. Devil horns, angry eyebrows, stink lines. The works. If you ask Rika about it, she'll just tell you it's 'some useless asshole'. Do not assume that's her ex.

MINAMISATSUMA, KAGOSHIMA

Rika had always considered her childhood to be a fairly ordinary one; she had two parents and three siblings (one older sister and two younger brothers, a pair of twins), and rode her bike to school every day like any other kid. Everything was always normal, simple, uneventful and maybe even a little boring. But, as the years went on, Rika started to find that she was more spiritually inclined than other children her age and her intuition was so sharp that it sometimes frightened her. (Those around her had started to joke that she could predict the weather better than the official forecast.) Never one to rock the boat, she tried not to bring it up too often and nobody ever seemed to mind but, in her own time, she grew to harbour an interest in the mysterious and unusual.

When she was thirteen, her dad was given a promotion that saw the whole family packing up and moving to Tokyo. The shift was staggering, it seemed to Rika like an entirely different world. Suddenly, she wasn't normal anymore. Overnight, she'd become the quiet new girl with weird interests. She was eventually able to make friends but only after months of sideways glances and whispers. Junior High had not been gentle on Rika.

By the time she got to high school though, things had changed. People had gotten used to Rika's sharp instincts and even started to take interest. Girls would hover outside her classroom, peering through the windows as they waited for her to come out and let them test her. Cold readings based on gut instinct, answers to questions like 'what number am I thinking of?', so on and so forth. She didn't get it right every time but it was enough for people to be impressed. After months of students begging her insight on to their entrance exam performance, Rika was worn out. Graduation was a blessing.

Shortly after graduation, Rika's family ended up moving back to Kagoshima. However, having already gotten into a good University to study Japanese Literature, Rika stayed behind and got her own tiny apartment in Tokyo.

SHINJUKU, TOKYO

Rika was quick to find work to support herself while she worked on her studies; she got a job as a cashier in a little bookstore that specialised in the occult. Although her experiences growing up kept her from telling anybody about her talents, she had never let go of that interest in all things strange and unexplained. It was a perfect job for her and she continued to work there for the entirety of her academic career. Her coworkers were Hayato, the nephew of the shop's owner and son of a television illusionist, and Sumire, the daughter of a wealthy family whose idea of rebellion was getting into retail work.

About two years into working there, a new regular started showing his face. Rika quickly learned that he was a good friend of Hayato's and had previously worked at the bookshop, having been replaced by Rika almost as soon as he had left. His name was Tsukidate Sho and he was...an interesting character; he'd quit his bookstore job at twenty-two, head filled with haphazard dreams of becoming an unlicensed private detective. (Hayato had ensured her that Sho had a real and valid motive but it too sensitive a subject to share with her, despite Sho's own claims that he wanted to get paid for being nosy.) Regardless, it didn't take Rika very long to get used to his bewildering presence and she even soon befriended him.

Eventually, Rika grew to trust this ragtag team of friends enough to tell them about her apparent gifts. She admitted she wasn't really sure if it was anything special at all, that she was sure it was probably just good judgement. Sumire told her, 'You've either got freaky powers or you're just freaky smart. Either way, it's freaky.' And yet, for the first time, nobody cared all that much. To them, she was still just Rika.

By the time Rika had graduated from University, it seemed like Sho had grown disillusioned with life as a private detective. Week after week, she'd hear him complain that all he ever had to work on were adultery cases. One day, Sho pulled Rika aside and proclaimed he had a plan, a great plan, and he needed her help. Sho's was from Kawagoe, a city in Saitama known for having maintained it's Edo-era architecture and, as it turned, his family had upheld a tradition of fortune telling for generations. The plan was as follows— they'd set up their own fortune telling and psychic reading business, with Rika as the face of it, using her talents wherever possible, while Sho used his skills to hunt out information on the customers. A mix of cold and hot reading at once. He would teach her the skills he'd gained growing up, things like showmanship and similar little flourishes. Rika had her doubts at first, not wanting to scam or fraud anybody, but Sho insisted that most people didn't believe this stuff, that they were selling an experience. She recalled her experiences at school and how much trouble people had caused her just for that same experience. She agreed to his plan.

Setting up shop in Sho's office in Kabukicho, Tokyo's answer to a red light district, the two would work together for a couple of years, with Rika juggling the scheme with her bookstore job, and they made a surprisingly good team. Eventually, they got close enough for Sho to explain himself, why he'd gotten into the business of being a private detective. When he was just a kid, maybe about fourteen years old, his best friend had gone missing. Sho was the last person to see him but there was a big dark gap in his memory between that last sighting and Sho coming to his senses. Despite his best efforts, he'd never been able to find any answers and the only appeasement he'd ever found was looking into the problems of others.

At some point, the pair had gotten into trouble with the wrong people during a job gone a little wrong. The pair decide their best choice is to make a run for it and lay low for just a little while, and Rika opens up to him about a particular vision she's been having that seems to relate to the city of Las Vegas and a feeling that something is beckoning there. With that, their destination is decided and Sho sends her off on her own, explaining he's got work to finish off in Tokyo first and they'll reunite later. they never reunited.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

At first, Rika had feared for the worst. Sho’s job was hardly free of danger. The only way she could contact Sho was by email and it took her a couple of weeks to get decent access to her inbox. When she finally got access to everything, there was nothing. Another month passed before she finally heard from Sho. In his email, he explained that he'd actually stuck his nose far too deep into something he shouldn't have done and he'd never had any plans of fleeing the country with her; he'd lied to her to make sure she got out alone. However, due to his refusal to explain what was actually going on and the fact she'd been stranded in a totally new country, she was pissed. Still, she respects his warnings not to speak a word of this stuff to anyone. (Should she be worried for him, even if he is a liar?)

It would take her a while to settle into life here in Las Vegas but eventually she finds good work as an archivist for the Deadly Possessions Haunted Museum, where she spends her days poring over pages upon pages of stories of the occult.

Needless to say, this spate of mysterious death and the rumours of something more sinister, perhaps even supernatural, being afoot has caught her attention.

[b4rredteeth]

"Thank you kindly," Matevos said with a bit of a flurish of his fake British accent. "This should do the trick." And he set back to work. His fingers worked quickly, but he was well aware of the two at his back, and the possibility of someone seeing them. The lock was a bit jackey, probably used countless of times over the years, and maybe went through a few thefts as well. "The lock, just jankey," he said, waving the two of them back with an annoyed gesture.

He bit his lip and then heard the satisfying click of the mechanism giving way to his manipulation, the trunk opening with an audible screech. "We're in!"

He quickly took stock of what was within it, not noticing the sudden tension that took place behind his back. He should be surprised by the blood soaked linnens: but he'd seen blood before, it didn't much phase him. Instead, his eye was drawn to the mask. Not valuable, no, but... he didn't know. It called to him. Literally. He heard disembodied laughter in his head, ringing in his ears. With the hands of a skilled thief, he took it and let it sink into the messenger bag he was carrying.

[bcbymaria]

She couldn't breath. Not from anything as physical as the figures before her, but from fear. She could only see the whites of his clothes, of his face. The contrasting black blended in with the darkness around him, as if it were apart of him. At his feet stood a beast. Maria was pretty sure it was dog, but something was wrong about it. Patches of skin shown where fur was missing, it's eyes bore into her in a way she found incredibly unsettling. She would have been afraid if any animal snarled at her the way this one did, but this was different. It growled with lips pulled back, large teeth bare, saliva dripping from it's snout. The two stood maybe five feet away, close enough that she could almost feel the air between them compressing into something suffocating. Atticus had been right, she wasn't much a fan of the clown either.

When her body finally made her draw a breath, it echoed through her chest, shaking her ribs as it filled her lungs. "We should go." The words left her no louder than a breath.

Her grip only tightened on Rika's arm, her other hand flailing behind her back till it found Matavos. She tapped him urgently and started to walk sideways, eyes still locked on the clown. "We need to go now." She whispered again.

[charmwisp]

We need to go now. Rika wished she could say she felt any braver than Maria seemed to feel. She could not. There was a lump in her throat, her vision fuzzy and unfocused until the very moment she felt Maria's grip tighten. Whether she liked it not, Rika would have to be braver than this. As if guided by Maria's movements, Rika began to step sideways as well, her steps cautious but deliberate. It was funny, she'd had her doubts about opening this trunk (and she'd said as much aloud, hadn't she?) but she hadn't imagined anything quite like this. The bad feeling fizzling at the base of her gut had risen and risen, tangling all sorts of knots on the way. Breaking free from Maria's hold, Rika held her high and tried, calmly as she could, to march away from the trunk. She did not get far. Without a gasp of breath, or even a single sound at all, the strange clown intercepted her path. In an instant, the confidence faded. She drew to a clumsy and immediate stop. A low growling began to rumble through the air and her gaze fell to the dog. (Dog? That was the only way to describe it, really, but it hardly looked like any dog she'd seen before.) It lowered its head, haunches raised. From what Rika could tell, despite the dizziness of panic, the clown was in full control of the dog, as if he was able to command it even without words or speech. In the corner of her eye, she saw the clown begin to move once more and raised her head. For one awful moment, Rika felt herself making direct eye contact. The clown, quiet as ever, drew its finger across its throat in a slicing motion. A warning. His other hand moved to his pocket...

"The hairpin," Rika blurted out, stepping back and turning to face Matevos. There was no time for manners. Her breath felt heavy and the air around her felt thin. Thrusting out a hand towards Matevos, she said, "Give me the hairpin. Now." She'd make use of it somehow. She wasn't sure how but she'd do it. Make a weapon out of it. Anything. Great inspiration comes in times of desperation, doesn't it? Her voice was shaky, her demands urgent. "Please."

[charmwisp]

outside the cupid's arrow / @moonlessmines & @bcbymaria

I have a bad feeling about this. A thought that had crossed Rika's mind so many times over that it threatened to border on parody. Yet, every single time, she was drawn into the heart of that doubt, like a moth to the flame. She'd always been a worrywart but she had always been terribly curious. Just when had one begun to outweigh the other? When had the promise of mystery become a siren's song? It had been Rika's own choice, after all, to follow along with the others when Daisy had decided to leave the Cupid's Arrow behind. Cautious though Rika seemed to believe she was (doubts growing, growing, growing...), leaving the others to walk into trouble alone was out of the question. After all, if Rika was the one who had doubts, if she was the one who was convinced there was danger on the horizon, did it not make sense for her to be the one to stand on-guard and keep watch?

"I just don't think we should go raking through somebody else's things," said Rika, dropping her voice to a hissed whisper. "I swear I'm not trying to be a buzzkill, we just don't know what we'll find in there. What if we upset the owner?" She was keeping her distance from the trunk but had remained just close enough that she could peer over Daisy's shoulder. Looking back and forth between the other two, it looked like Maria was holding her own reservations. For now, all Rika could do was get a feel for their surroundings. If they were in any sort of luck, the vehicle would block them from plain sight long enough to run off if needed. Surely, finding an escape route wouldn't be too difficult...? Not wanting to tempt fate, she shook her head and sighed. Rika was giving up. After all, a part of her did want to know why this unlocked trunk was waiting here, almost as if begging someone to go through it. "If you have to go through it... just make you put everything back, okay? Exactly as you found it, like nobody ever touched it."

[hearts-and-hugs]

It's very strange though, isn't it? Two members of the same family, one after the other? I suppose coincidences can happen but if there was a third, then— The orange-haired fae looked over at her guest when she stopped herself and she thought something might be wrong, the way she put her hand up to her mouth, as if to stop herself from talking. To be quite honest, Celeste hadn't really put too much thought into it at all. Sure, it was a tragedy but was there a pattern? Maybe it really was a coincidence. And either way, it didn't really concern her much either way. "I mean, I agree that it's weird for sure. But I don't know... Maybe these sort of things just happen here. It is Vegas, after all."

When the blonde apologized, Celeste shook her head and offered a sweet smile. "No need to say sorry to me." She nodded in agreement when she mentioned wanting some good news for once. "It really is all doom and gloom lately, huh? I wish we could all just have fun and be happy." She rested her elbow on the table and cradled her chin in her hand, as if she was off the clock and not working. Glancing down, she noticed the woman's drink and suddenly remembered she was technically on the clock. "Oh, how do you like your drink? Is it good or do you want something else?"

[charmwisp]

"These sorts of things just happen..." The words were murmured, unconsciously spoken aloud as if to help her think through them. As if they wouldn't take shape on their unless she tried them on her for herself. A sigh escaped thereafter, her shoulders slumped. "Isn't that kind of a bummer, though?" Rika asked, cocking her head to one side. "Just accepting it all because it happens to be Vegas. It feels like such a miserable thought." On the other hand, perhaps it was naive of her to look at it any other way. She was sure rotten things happened all the time in Tokyo without her having known. "I just hope that they're able to... figure all this out and that they don't just give up because they're used to bad things happening." But, when big, well-known families like this are involved, maybe there were reasons things didn't get solved.

A soft laugh fell from her lips. Having fun and being happy really did sound pleasant. "I guess the rest of us will just have to do our best to live good lives, right?" Rika smiled. It was a sincere smile. Hopeful. "There's no dark without light, after all! I'm trying to get better at just appreciating little things where I can." Somehow, she felt silly saying that aloud. It was the sort of advice she'd hear from the nosy old ladies back in her hometown. Perhaps they'd been onto something. "Little things like this drink! Which is perfect, by the way. If anything, I might just order a second one."

[thankyou-taeyeon]

SAKURA 251119 EASY CRAZY HOT ENCORE in TOKYO DOME

[hearts-and-hugs]

location: riviera casino & hotel

date: march 25, 1997

@boneyardstarters

The last few days had been quite the whirlwind in the city of Las Vegas. After the assassination at City Hall, it seemed that the Vitelli family had been scrambling to get control of the situation and even though others might think of the PR nightmare it was causing, Celeste couldn't help but feel for the Vitelli family. After all, she knew what it was like to lose someone that you loved. It was horrible and sad and her heart went out to the family. No matter what kind of mess business they were caught up in, they were still people at the end of the day. Everyone had feelings.

Business had seemingly continued as usual at the Casino and even though the staff hadn't been told much about it at all, it was all over the news and it seemed to be all anyone could talk about. "It really is so sad," Celeste said, frowning for a moment as she thought about Franco's demise. "I just hope that the family can mourn in peace. There's so much talk about what will happen next but they just need a moment, ya' know?" Suddenly, she spotted one of her tables from across the dining room and a look of surprise crossed her features. "Oh, shoot! I forgot to put their order in!" She disappeared momentarily as she ran to the bar and apologized for the hundredth time about forgetting to give the drink orders to the bartender. She of course came back to her conversation, though, which was much more pressing to her than her actual job. "Oops," she giggled. "I have got to stop doin' that," she smiled.

[charmwisp]

Rika stared down at her own drink, watching the colourful liquid swirl and whirlpool as she stirred it with her straw. It was rather sad, wasn't it? She was lucky enough to have gone without experiencing loss like that in her own life, and certainly not more than one loss in such rapid succession, so it was difficult for her to even fathom it. Is that just the sort of risk that came with being part of a well-known, powerful family? Admittedly, there was a lot about the internal politics of this city that Rika didn't understand as a relative newcomer but...

The time it took Celeste to scurry off and return should have given Rika a chance to mull over her thoughts and reconsider saying the first thing that came to her mind but all curious minds full of questions begin to overflow eventually. The words came out of her mouth almost before she'd realised, before she even had a chance to remember her manners and assure Celeste she wasn't bothered by the momentary disruption. "It's very strange though, isn't it?" Rika asked, continuing to stir away at her drink. "Two members of the same family, one after the other? I suppose coincidences can happen but if there was a third, then—"

She dropped her straw, her hand snapping to her mouth where she pressed her knuckles against her lips, as if to silence herself. Rika had always been fascinated by mysteries but this was not a crime novel. Just because it was a lifestyle so far removed from her own did not mean it wasn't still someone's life. Her memories of that day, however, were... hazy. Difficult to make sense of. "Sorry, that's an awful thing to say, isn't it?" she sighed. "I'm no better than the journalists pestering them all... wouldn't it be nice to get some good news sometimes?"

[b4rredteeth]

“Well, that’s perfect in that case! I do favour being able to speed through the streets,” Nass said, a grin on his face as he clicked the meter on. He knew Las Vegas like his back-pocket, always had, and finding strange places wasn’t that odd. However, he would usually express some surprise when the requests were particularly odd. But there had been too many hours on his shift already, too many people seen. He barely registered outskirts of the woods was a strange place to be. “Of course, past the old water tower, I know where that is.” He put his blinker on and navigated into traffic. The road was crowded, but to anyone who was used to being there, it was just a game of right timing. 

“Are you planning on a hike?” he asked.

[charmwisp]

Despite her gut instinct and her initial doubt, Rika repressed the urge to grimace at the word speed. Fast drives weren't her favourite. Still, it wasn't as though he was going to start breaking the speed limit and a slow trip to somewhere out of town would likely take forever. She already felt bad enough about asking him to go so far out of the way, whether or not she was paying him for the effort. "It's not too long a trip?" she asked, a somewhat vain request for validation. He'd already agreed, there was no point pressing the matter. Her fingers found their way to the seatbelt, in search of nothing more than something with which she could fidget. "Not a hike," said Rika, with a shake of the head, "I just want to look around. Maybe it's a gut feeling pulling me there." Finally, she pulled her gaze from the window and the hazy city streets falling away from her as the vehicle rolled onward. Did she sound too distracted? Too distant? "Have you been out there? And have you ever climbed the tower? The view from up there is stunning."

[cfstvlla]

A SNORT LEFT HER at hearing the news that this was the first of this type of gathering Rika had ever been to, quickly followed up by a dry, "Damn, I'm sorry." It clearly wasn't...the most conventional nor well put-together of it's kind, despite her mother's best efforts to cutesy it up. Stella supposed she had done the same years before when her sister was sporting her own bump; the only difference was that Isabelle was all for every frill and ruffle and It's a girl! pastel pink decoration. The biker clearly hadn't raised a hand to stop her, though it was impossible to notice how the decor for the event didn't exactly match that of the punk-centered record shop. "Celebrating after the baby is born sounds like hell. I'm barely getting sleep now from all the kicking but tryna host a party with a newborn? That just sounds like a torture." It wasn't just her lack of charismatic personality or disinterest in being the center of attention that had her lurking in the shadows of her own party, but the aches and pains made anywhere sound more appealing than in the midst of a pong game. Despite it all, the archivist's grin was met with a smaller one of her own. "Consider yourself lucky then." Twirling a pretzel around an index finger by one of its loops as if it were a toy, her gaze trailed over the scene of the party, overall pleased with it even if it wasn't entirely proven by her attitude and words. For what it was worth, there was inexplicable feeling that there was enough people who cared about their baby to even be able to have a shower; the little thing was already so adored and didn't even know it yet. Gratitude had never been easily shown by her, and a decade ago it only would've been presented through gritted teeth. Now there was a sliver of her that wanted to deliver it on her daughter's behalf. "I was kinda hopin' to keep it from lookin' too lopsided just an hour into the party. But if you grab me one, you'll be my favorite."

[charmwisp]

"Gosh, that would be a lot to put up with right after childbirth" said Rika, with a sympathetic grimace. "I think it's more that people tend to wait until a baby's born to start sending gifts? I'm not sure how common a party like this is...?" Head tipped to one side and her brow furrowed, it did occur to Rika that she hadn't really known any expecting mothers during her few years living as an adult in Japan. "I don't think I even have it in me for a big birthday bash at the best of times," she added, a laugh bubbling beneath her words, "Although, if this is what your bad luck looks like... at least it could be a lot worse!" After all, tiring as it might have been, there was something so pleasant about all this chaos, something very heart-warming. Without even realising, Rika let out a sigh. Wouldn't it be nice if life were always so simple?

"Don't you worry, I'll be eeeextra careful picking one out," she said, her voice taking on a singsong quality. For better or for worse, Rika had always been a perfectionist. Asking her to swipe something without making a mess was much the same as asking her to take a deep breath. No, she wouldn't dare leave the cupcake stand looking untidy, lest the guilt of spoiling any of these lovingly put together decorations haunt her forevermore!

With that said, Rika slipped away, determined to get to work as quickly as possible. She hardly considered herself an especially sneaky person, especially not when she was so cautious and careful, but enough of the other partygoers were either too preoccupied with the other activities on offer or just not all that scandalised by the very ordinary idea of a guest grabbing themselves a cupcake for her to make it through without interruption. (On second thought, she may have over-exaggerated the consequences of this in her own head.) Regardless, it did not take Rika to resurface at Stella's side with two cupcakes in tow. "Here you go, I picked the most appealing one I could," she said. "After all, if I'm going to be the favourite, I might as well earn it. The second one is for me though— I thought I'd be able to resist but who's really that strong?"

[b4rredteeth]

OPEN STARTER from Nasser Chandra - in his cab. @boneyardstarters

The door was opened and Nass barely paid attention, looking into traffic as it moved along the busy street on another busy friday afternoon. Ready for the weekend, cars and people and busses on their way home. He was running on fumes, a thirty-six hour shift that shouldn't be thirty-six, and if anyone asked, it wasn't thirty-six. He was going to have a splitting headache once he stopped, once he let his mind rest. There was an empty coffee cup next to him, a filled one to his lips.

"Good afternoon," he said in a sing-song kind of voice. "Busy on the road, where can I take you?" He tapped the meter, it was off, he had taught himself how to fuck with it, but it was rare that he actually did. Right now it simply suggested he hadn't been working that long yet. The hours on the road felt like one big vague mess anyway. Everything did, since... well.

"Might take an extra few minutes if its anywhere in the city centre, just so you know." He looked into the mirror to see the client behind him, for the first time.

[charmwisp]

Rika slipped into the taxi with barely a word, hardly even a breath escaping from her lips, and tucked her skirt neatly beneath her legs, busy hands smoothing out the pleats. There was nothing in particular that had pushed her to take this trip today of all days. No strange dream, no mysterious vision and no unshakeable gut feeling that something awful was on the horizon. This time around, it was simple curiosity. Something had been on her mind a while now and it was about time she tried to put the thought to rest.

"That's not a problem," said Rika, finally speaking up, "I won't be going into the centre." She did not meet his gaze in the rearview mirror, her head turned toward her window instead. It might have been nice if it were raining outside, if she'd been able to watch a single raindrop trickle slowly down the window plane, and she could have wallowed in her stormy mood a while. Vegas was such a dry and sunny place that she felt quite out of place instead. "You wouldn't mind taking me to the woods on the outskirts, would you? The ones just beyond that old water tower?"

[cfstvlla]

where : skratch records when : february 20th, 1997 who : @boneyardstarters

FROM THE CORNER NEXT TO THE SNACK TABLE she had managed to sequester herself to, out of convenience for her hand diving into a bowl of pretzels and for the purpose of being dragged into another game. Stella was excited for the event that was in the name of their soon-to-be baby girl, truly she was and it was made evident by the fact that neutrality had taken over her expression rather than the usual disdain, but even that hadn't made hosting an event where she towing around the guest of honor less overwhelming for a biker who would rather command a room and immediately walk right out of it after. "Listen, you're not allowed to judge me for hiding out over here. Take my advice, if your overzealous mother ever offers to help with your baby shower by picking the games, don't fall for it. Any less work wasn't worth...whatever the hell she's tryna get everyone doing." Something with chopsticks and pacifiers that no one could survive from looking ridiculous while participating, even if it did make the perfect opportunity for the queenpin to slink away—as much as one could at her size—to where she was now. "S'long as Cyrek looks happy, though; that's really all I care 'bout." And he did, the last time she had seen him, which was worth any amount of baby-themed games or threats of any hand that touched her stomach was asking to be lopped off. "God, and getting another one of those fucking mini cupcakes off that display. Y'think anyone will notice if I steal another one? 'Cause I'm running out of ways to make it look like none of 'em are missing from the stupid stand."

[charmwisp]

So it was her mother's idea? That made sense, Rika supposed. She had thought this event was a little more jovial than she might have expected from this particular duo— and there is no judgement behind that thought whatsoever. But Rika had always been more of a shrinking wallflower and had made her own retreat to the snack table in an attempt to avoid the crowd. "This is actually the first baby shower I've ever attended," said Rika, eyes scanning each corner of the room, her gaze darting from decoration to decoration. There was no way for her to gauge which parts of this event were excessive and which were simply par for the course with these things but she was quite fond of the theming. Well, she was a cat-lover through and through after all. One cannot betray their nature too much. "They aren't really a thing back home— we tend to celebrate once the baby's already born — so I guess I won't have to worry too much about taking your advice, right?" A playful grin was thrown Stella's way.

The way Stella spoke of Cyrek was sweet. Although Rika was not quite a hopeless romantic, she'd always been fond of a nice story and it was hard not to feel second-hand joy for a friend. Still, she decided not to say so aloud. Stella had probably already dealt with her fair share of gushing and mushiness in the last half hour alone. The wistful sigh that had bubbled up in her chest was quietly swallowed. "You really think anybody's going to judge you for stealing a few cakes at your own party?" she mused. "I could always swipe one for you. Disperse the blame?"

[thmbheart]

kiara + ??? : december 27, mid - afternoon @ bake me happy @boneyardstarters

there were few things kiara loved more than baking. it was something that she had been doing since she was a child, but lately, it hadn’t been bringing her as much joy as it once did. part of her chalked it up to her being alone in vegas, away from her family, but kiara knew the real reason. it had been a few months, but every time she closed her eyes, she could see carnage. that night with the others in the desert still haunted her. that look in their eyes as that… thing came towards her. it was something that she could never escape. but god, was she trying to. but there was no one to talk to about it, not anyone who would understand, anyway.

her mental state seemed to be reflected in the bakery. the back was utter chaos, and as she looked out over the hodgepodge of pastries and delicacies sitting on the counter, it was apparent that the front was looking the same way. often, kiara liked to bake whilst taking customers. it was a way for them to see her process, have an inside look at how everything was being done. as she kneaded practically annihilated a bread dough on the front counter, she heard the bell chime, and she looked up. “welcome in.” she said, trying to smile, not letting up on the dough in front of her. “sorry, about the chaos. we’ve been pretty busy today. take your pick,” she rubbed her eyes slightly, “i know we’re almost out of the rainbow brownies but i can easily make more if that’s what you want.”

[charmwisp]

There had been no particular reason for Rika to have wound up in this particular spot on this particular day. She'd been in the area and followed a whim, figuring that buying herself something tasty might add a little excitement to what had otherwise been a completely mundane and out of the ordinary day. Although she could not help but feel a little silly that her current idea of excitement seemed to be a trip to a bakery, that her life was so simple and straightforward grabbing a cake or two might make any difference.

(But...maybe this city had seen enough excitement for a while after all. That feeling of doubt that always found her before things went wrong had begun to cling to her like a second skin. Was it just paranoia?)

She'd entered the bakery in a daze but was quickly knocked right out of it by the pleasant jingle of the bell above the door. The greeting was returned with a smile of Rika's own and a polite dipping of the head. Habit. There was something pleasant about a place like this, even if it was chaotic, be it the comforting scent of fresh bread and the just too-sweet scent of chocolate icing or just the busy atmosphere. "Oh, don't worry about it," said Rika, with a shake of the head and sympathetic smile. "I just hope I'm not about to cause you more trouble." A few strides forward and she was at the counter. It was always a lot of pressure making a quick decision. "What is a rainbow brownie, anyway?"

[starskipplng]

Asa is none the wiser - his curiosity is real, genuine, as he sits in both reverence and confusion in front of the museum. He eats another M&M and looks at Rika with brown eyes that look nearly black, even in the sun. "I suppose then you have to figure out what counts as a reputable source, right?"

His inked fingers poke around in the Ziploc bag before he loses all motivation to find whatever he's looking for in there. "Well, the painting falls off the wall, all the time. It's the only piece of art on my walls that does it. And I have a lot of art hung up." Asa's brow furrows in concentration as he tries to get the top zipped up properly, pressing and dragging fingers a few times before it successfully closes.

"And recently.. I heard a voice. Woman's voice, and the painting is of a woman... and if you had heard the voice, I mean... it really matches this lady in the painting. Just, to a T."

[charmwisp]

"An expert could take a look at it, maybe?" Rika mused, finger tapping her chin and her head tilted. "If your story was interesting enough and sounded solid, they could get an expert to take a peek." The museum did have a curator, after all, and she was certain they'd know what to do with this situation. However, she was the archivist. If anyone should have been taking a look, it was Rika Hoshino. Perhaps it should come as no surprise, then, that she was immediately intrigued by his story.

Rika leant forward, clumsily abandoning any previous attempts to look nonchalant. The business with the ziploc bag barely even registered with her. She had always been like this, for better or for worse; if something caught her attention, she would zero in on it and the rest of the world would lose focus, like a camera lens locked only onto what sat right before it. "And it's definitely not your wall that's to blame?" she asked. Despite her interest, she did still have to err on the side of caution. In all the years she's spent trying to rationalise peculiar things, even when it led her nowhere, she'd learned that there were always more questions to be asked. Perhaps that part of the wall in particular was weak. Maybe the nail on which the painting hung had been placed strangely. "Have you tried moving it elsewhere?"

And, then, of course, the final and most important question... Now, Rika was in no position to immediately doubt someone for saying they were hearing things. Had she not been pulled to this city by mysterious dreams and a sense that something was waiting for her? "Have you... heard her since?"

[starskipplng]

STATUS: open ( @boneyardstarters ) WHERE: outside of the Deadly Possessions Haunted Museum

"Do you think they take donations?" Asa picks at the small Ziploc baggy he's holding - trail mix that he'd made on one of his better days. More M&Ms and pretzels than nuts and fiber, but at least he's remembering to eat. The small Irishman could easily waste away with how many times he forgets to have a meal. Inked fingers dig around for one of the pecans. "And how do they know if they're really haunted? Do you think it all goes through some sort of test? Certified, board-approved? I think I have a haunted painting at home... but what if they don't think it's haunted enough?"

[charmwisp]

Rika wasn't entirely certain what she was getting out of this, out of playing stupid and acting like she didn't have a clue. After all, as an employee of the museum in question, didn't she count as 'they'? She scrunched up her face a little, trying to feign concentration, like she really had to think about this answer. Now, it was not that she was trying to lie but a certain curiosity had sprung forth in this moment and she could not shake it off; just how did everyone else see this place? "I think they would take donations, just like any other museum," she started, tapping her chin with one finger, "But I think it'd have to come from a reputable source of some kind. I don't think you could just show up at the door one day and tell them you've found something odd. That's probably true of historical artefacts as well."

The mention of a painting was interesting though, even if it had her feeling immediately sceptical. For someone who worked in this very building, Rika was surprisingly careful about what she chose to believe. Perhaps it was because she had spent so much time trying to rationalise her own abilities. "Well... what about it makes you think it's haunted?" she asked, an eyebrow raised. "I'm sure they'd expect you to have some pretty compelling evidence if you're thinking of trying to donate it."

[ghxstadventvres]

with: @charmwisp where: next to the bonfire at goob lagoon when: october 31st, 1996

She couldn't loiter around the bar forever, which led her astray to the bonfire with the promise of food. The midnight hour was close at hand, leaving intoxicated partygoers dancing around blindly by the fire and instilling concern in a few guests that they were going to tumble over right into it. She was unbothered by the appearance of mischief and miscreants, taking a seat beside her fellow investigator without paying so much as a greeting for a minute, before offering up a cocktail that had been on the specialty menu. "Care for a Monster Mash? I'm honestly not sure what's in it besides dragonfruit, and it's way too sweet for me," she giggled, soft and lilting, the webbed fingers slightly impairing her ability to grasp onto it with a secure handle, "Did you bring anyone to this, or did you come alone?" She wouldn't judge, either way — as often as they investigated together, she realized that she didn't know too much about her crew besides Drusila. After all, she was one of the newer recruits, departing from her spot in the New York City ballet a mere two years prior. Her niece had been left with the babysitter for the evening, and she was keen to make the most out of the night, if wondering whether Annaki had bailed on the date. Nonetheless, the witch wasn't one to carry the burden of anxieties for too long, and festering them would draw the bad energy she was attempting to avoid right toward her. "I hear it's the perfect night for a dip, so I was wondering if you'd like to go to the docks with me — I haven't gotten a chance to know all about what happened that frightful night we had the storm. Do you wanna indulge me on a walk?"

[charmwisp]

While the sudden presence at her side did catch Rika off-guard, she was just as quick to recover, her gasp quickly cascading into a brief wave of giggles as she clutched a hand to her mouth. That was probably what she got for staring into space like that, allowing herself to fall completely dead to the rest of the world. There was no helping it though, she'd always found bonfires just enchanting. Watching the flames dance and flicker, feeling the scorching heat against your cheeks; was there anything else quite like it? At least it was a familiar face that appeared before her now, pleasantly illuminated by the fire's glow. "I don't know if I'll fare too much better, I think most of the stuff here is too sweet," said Rika, not that it stopped her taking the glass from Salem's grasp anyway. This was less out of eagerness to try the cocktail itself and more out of concern that Salem might drop it and ruin her costume. That'd be just heart-breaking!

"It's just me tonight," she said, a little sheepishly. She wondered, as she took a sip of her newly-acquired cocktail, why she'd bothered adding tonight to the end of that. It wasn't like she really kept much company at all, having largely kept to herself since moving here. The liquid spilled down her throat and she could not help but squint as the flavour of it hit her; a little tangy and just as sweet as advertised. Nothing she couldn't stomach, however. After all, it was Halloween, wasn't it? The holiday was still a little foreign to her but she'd quickly gotten the grasp tooth-rottingly sweet was kind of just the norm. "Between you and me, I'm not much of a social butterfly."

Her gaze travelled, naturally, to the horizon. The docks didn't sound too unpleasant. Rika had grown up by the ocean, in the most southerly prefecture besides Okinawa, and had never been too far from that great sheet of blue. Even if this was just a lake, there was something nostalgic about watching the water. (Or maybe being stuck in a landlocked state was just making her homesick.) "Oh, I have a lot to say about that night," said Rika, standing up and brushing herself down. "But it's a quite a wild story so we can leave it until we reach the water, yeah?"

[divinitymctions]

drew froze, realizing what rika commented, contemplating the idea despite how silly it must’ve sounded to their ears. “wait, rika, you have a point ! even if it sounds absurd because it’s probable — what’s the word i’m looking for?” it was rhetorical; there was a long pause. “damn it, i forgot the term — no, it came back to me. poltergeist.” well, just the idea of evil spirits causing a mess like the one they were currently in had drew feeling rather uneasy. it can’t be, right? there’s no way... however, this is what drew was raised to know, with her parents being involved in the paranormal world and all. though her views were strongly imposed on her by them, but that doesn’t mean drusila wasn’t stubborn and opinionated (in her own right to be such). “i can only imagine they could be scared shitless or laugh. i guess we’ll see how they respond,” drusila sighed before continuing, “and you’re right, it’ll probably be buried under the rug.” she looked back at rika, pondering for a second before replying to her question. “i’ve no idea, honestly. do i even have an enemy in town right now? probably,” drew shrugged her shoulders. “you think we should leave everything untouched before the police get here? if they do, that is.”

[charmwisp]

"Polter—?" It was a word she most certainly knew, encountered many times throughout her readings of the occult and other such paranormal affairs, and her face lit up as she recognised it. She almost clasped her hands together in quiet excitement but, at the very last minute, she managed to restrain herself— not only did it feel a bit insensitive to get all giddy at a time like this, it wasn't as though a poltergeist was a positive suggestion. Besides, despite her fascination with the supernatural and her own ever-unexplained experiences, Rika did not quite know where she sat when it came to the topic of spirits. "Somehow, this feels a bit too deliberate for something like a poltergeist though," said Rika, cautiously turning around to look at the rest of the room. "If it's not very deliberate, it's at least very thorough. If you told me a ghost was responsible for this, I'd start wondering what grudge they had against us and I don't think poltergeists are quite so vengeful."

Oh, Rika, she thought to herself. What are you wittering on about!? She had a way of trying to battle nerves with pointless rambling. In this case, she wasn't all that nervous herself but it was almost as though she subconsciously thought it'd be a good way to calm a tense situation. For all she knew, she was just making things worse. "I can imagine it already; they'll us they have some more important case to look into and then leave us out in the cold!" she said, with an air of mock-dramatic exasperation. Though she did not dare voice the thought, for fear of making things seem more alarming than they were, she did wonder if any of these mysterious missing persons cases and sudden murders had started with warning signs like this, reported long before and left ignored.

"You probably have an enemy?" asked Rika, genuinely surprised. "Gosh, I can't think of anyone I've upset..." At least, not on purpose. Something had brought her here, to this city, but she doubted that was connected to this. In fact, this would probably scare a lot of people off back home. She'd been halfway through trying to tidy something else on another desk, out of sheer instinct, before she paused, an embarrassed giggle escaping. "Oh, you're right, we should keep it all as is. We wouldn't want to tamper with the evidence!"

[divinitymctions]

despite the stress that was accumulating within her body, the tension was building up in her shoulders and neck, but she let out a chuckle with rika’s observation. she didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, so drusila went with the latter. “yeah, we can definitely rule out the angry spirits—i mean, we shouldn’t expect this from them.” there was a shrug of her shoulders with the thought, but appreciated that their was an attempt to lighten up the mood. this wasn’t exactly what she was expecting to witness... but alas, it happened; it is what it is, as people say. “please do. hunt out the phone, so we can contact the police. i doubt they’ll do anything about it.” while drew mumbled the last remark, her attention was immediately caught, and it had her wondering. “sure as hell hope the cables hadn’t been pulled out of the walls, or so help me rika.” drew’s voice was on the verge of cracking—losing her mind, actually, or all of the above—but knew she could rely on rika. “i might as well go look at the cctv footage.”

[charmwisp]

"Oh, I was trying to suggest it could be the angry spirits," said Rika, in a playful tone. But she pauses for a moment, before adding, in a slightly more sincere manner, "But I suppose that's a silly idea." After all, the more she looks around and the more she actually takes stock of the situation, the more she gets the sense that this might not be the best time for pointless jokes. Frowning, she makes her way across the room. It's a clumsy process that requires her to either take wide strides over some scattered objects and hop quickly over others but she eventually manages to hunt out the phone. To her relief, it still seems to be attached to everything properly, even if the pieces are a little scattered and the plastic casing is certainly looking a little scuffed. "I can imagine how the police will respond to this already," she muses. "This'll probably just get buried underneath everything else going on. Maybe they'll at least find someone who'll help us tidy this?" Not likely, that's not really their job. Still, this whole time, Rika has been speaking as calmly as she can; tensions are high and she doesn't want to make things worse by adding to it. "Do you have any idea who'd even want to do this, before you check the footage?"

[tigtherover]

Oh, Tig had always fucking adored a storm. And this one, more-than-pattering across the rusting-down steel, had the makings of a wicked night. A full moon, too! If he'd been half so fond of fate as he was of lightning and thunder and the blue-black whorl of the clouds, he might have called it that. Fateful.

But he'd rather call it fun, and leave the evening at that. Good fun. He was already half-soaked, and the horror roiling under his thin, human skin was gnashing its fangs, gleeful, ready to revel; Tig cracked his jaw, at least, and took a lean over the tower railing, head canted back to catch some of that lashing rain on his tongue. After a moment's squinting, he whipped a smooth desert stone into the lashing weather. Well away from wherever Graves - a fine, funny, surely far from fateful name - was likely to be cowering, still. Still! While the storm began to tear this black, lovely sky apart! "Come on, then!" He howled out, tossing another of his pocket rocks. "You'll miss the best of it!"

Sighing, downright beatific, Tig watched the dark dance. And weighed another rock, tracing its sand-smoothed edges. Then snapped around, quick as a cat, as another shout split the thick, thunderous air. That dreamy sort of girl, another new face - she'd appeared behind him on the ladder like a pale shadow, a surprise. Wasn't Las Vegas just full of them. He scowled, head cocked to her odd question and the reason for it: Boxy? A radio. One of those new ones. All staticky - he'd noticed, been annoyed, considered his first full moon act of violence, and decided to spare the thing. Now, though...

His hand twitched around that next stone. And jerked up to toss it away, catlike, predatory attention all on that radio. If he'd had hackles - he would, soon - they'd be bristling. As it was, Tig stared, brow furrowed, barely registering the thunk of his last throw making some sort of contact. Not with Elodie, anyway; he would've smelled the blood, even in all this. But it wasn't blood, for once, that had him so fucking entranced. Whistling? "No-o," he answered, slowly. "Not that..." More like - Tig sunk into a crouch, ear nearly to one of those speakers. Like catching a conversation through the trees, the walls, the tunnels. In a language he knew well enough to very nearly feel out the half-heard words, to find the shape of them on his own tongue. But not quite. Not - right...

[soulsuckcr]

out of all the places elodie could’ve ended up tonight, it just had to be here, a rusting water tower cradled in some neck of the woods, right in middle of a storm that had been threatening the nevadan sky all evening. the city’s neon lull was a far-off flicker. at least they weren’t alone. three figures had climbed the ladder already, including the man she’d encountered on what had originally intended to be a short stroll. elodie stood below, arms folded tight across their chest, giving them a breezy “yeah, i’ll go after you!” whenever one of them looked their way. she hadn’t meant it. not even a little. she had no plans of going up; the thought alone was enough to make her nauseous. heights were an instant pass. yellow converse embroided with flowers scuffed idle patterns into the dirt, while kate bush’s voice travelled through the wind from above. they latched onto it. let it wrap around them. just a song. just a storm. as the wind picked up, they tugged their jacket a little tighter around their frame, unable to conceal the concern that only continued to grow the longer they were out here. “i’m okay down here! really!” was she, though? a prickle at the nape of her neck. a shiver running down their spine. to their left, there was a periodic clatter — thunk, thunk, thunk. stones. it was almost rhythmic, reminding her of the times she had watched hail bounce off of rooftops. “havin’ fun with those rocks?” she called up, a faint smile tugging at her lips. the feeling of being watched didn’t alleviate, however. thunk. another. then — a different sound. subtle. sickening. not metal. not tree. not dirt. flesh. something had been hit. the shift in atmosphere was immediate, their blood going cold, body rigid, heart hammering. then came the oldest instinct in the book. the one that had saved her life as a child. run. something else is out here. run. RUN. her feet moved before she could think, and she sprang toward the ladder, hands fumbling as her sneakers slammed against metal rungs, ascending in desperation. her breath came out in sharp, uneven gasps. the height didn’t matter anymore. the fear didn’t matter. but she didn’t make it far. something closed around their ankle — fingers, claws, something wrong; a grip that didn’t belong. and they screamed. shrill, guttural. “help me!” her voice tore through the storm as they kicked wildly, panic surging in their throat. “help!”

[charmwisp]

No, not that. These words echoed through her head like a condemnation. You alone are hearing this. You. Alone. In this place so far from home. You, and you alone — she was stuck here, alone, with no better company than a handful of dreams and voices and visions. Rika was a strong-willed, if somewhat timid, woman, good at forcing herself to hold her head high in spite of a well-trained reluctance to ever get in the way or cause problems. She'd managed to deal quite well with the isolation that came with moving to a whole new place on the other side of the world. Yet, here she was, at the summit of the water tower, on her knees and grasping desperately for something that made no sense. The only sound that seemed to blare out over that wretched whistling was the steady, rapid beat of her own pulse. "Not that?" she asked, her voice shaky. "Then... what?"

But fate would not make room for an answer. Barely as soon as Rika had finished speaking, a voice cut through the air. A scream, of sorts. It was enough, certainly, to knock Rika out of her daze, momentarily filling her head with a deafening silence. Then came the wind, rushing past her head, and then the rain, beating furiously against the barrel of the tower. And then came a second cry for help. It was pure instinct that moved Rika now. Any other time, she would have thought this through. She would have turned to one of the others, demanded they work together to figure this out. But, right now, it was hard to think straight. Besides, there'd been something in those trees. She'd been sure of it. The whistling did not beg to be ignored. If someone was trying to escape that very thing, why would she abandon them?

Rika scrambled to edge of the tower, an arm reaching out over the edge. Hand outstretched, fingers splayed. An honest, earnest attempt to help. "Take my hand, quick!" she called out, raising her voice to beat the howl of the wind.

It all happened much too quick. Rika was not a particularly strong person and this stranger's grip was more than enough to overpower her. Despite her best efforts to keep her balance, it was a losing battle. Balance was lost and, before she knew it, Rika was tumbling from her perch on the tower, taking this stranger with her.