starter for froggie ( @horrorbxby )
location: somewhere in the mountains
thalia didn’t waste any time. the second stevie told her about his hunch, where froggie could have gone to, she went off. she didn’t even care to let somebody know where she would be at– stevie could probably inform them if they wanted to know so much. she didn’t care to change shoes, clothes, or grab anything that could possibly help her on her way up the mountains. she had only been there once or twice with them all– but she had no idea how much of a special place it was for stevie and froggie. she simply thought it was one cool place to hang out, but now the story made her heart feel heavier as she took one step at a time up the path that started in the forest. thalia was a smart girl. she had enough knowledge to follow a trail and not die trying, but the weather was getting colder nowadays, and she had started walking only a few minutes before sunset.
it wasn’t long before night fell on her, a full moon shining her way ever so slightly, but not even close to enough to pierce through the thick trees that still had most of their leaves intact. she was scared again. of every single noise she heard around her, of every single rustling of branches and trees, of every single step she took once the trail had faded. in just a few weeks, thalia, who had mainly lived under excessive care and privilege, had been realizing how vulnerable she actually was– how scared she was of everything around her: she was scared of being chased, she was scared of darkness, of the sound the wind makes against a window open ajar, of the light reflected in her mirror after a car passed in the middle of the night. she was scared of her own voice, her own mind and how easy it could flip and turn itself useless. she was scared of that moment right before recognizing a panic attack– that moment where you feel like you are about to die in about five seconds with nothing to stop it. she was scared of losing stevie, of never talking to ernie again, of never looking into wheezie’s eyes, or valentine’s, or any of her friends. but she was terrified of losing froggie, which she was sure would happen if she didn’t move faster, if she didn’t keep on moving despite the paralyzing feeling she had, that didn’t allow her to look behind her.
she climbed for over an hour, however long stevie had told her. she had only her watch to count time, and after a couple slips and falls on the way up, the screen had shattered. her tights had holes over her knees, covered in dirt and scratches she would care for later, some other day. she could not feel any pain, nor her feet soaking wet and frozen after the entire trail. her hands were not safe from the injuries either, but she kept going for about ten more minutes to the left– “froggie?” she called for the first time, scared that her voice would disturb someone, something living around here. according to her memory, she would find the fireplace they used around there, but the dark had made it almost impossible for thalia to see anything.
“froggie, if you’re around here... i’m so-” she said, stepping on some kind of branch, that initiated a series of noises that moved around her, paralyzing her yet again. some more rustling, something like a growl and footsteps. thalia stopped breathing for a moment, but the thud of her heart was louder in her own hears than any other sound. and then came some more rustling, another little branch cracking, except thalia had not moved. she knew of bears, deer, elks, mountain lions, all sorts of giant animals that could be found in the area, and when the smartest choice was to stay very still until every sound was gone, thalia listened to her survival instinct first and set off running. she didn’t scream, she didn’t have the energy for that, but she ran in the first direction she could find, away from the source of the noises, and she ran, and slipped and ran some more until she spotted a small almost torn apart cabin. thalia’s breath was so loud she would not even fool a bunny if she stayed still. and even when the cabin seemed like some sort of crack house, or scenery from a horror film, thalia opened the door and stepped inside, closing behind her and leaning back against the wood as if that was enough to be safe.
the inside of the cabin was even darker than the outside, but it was quiet, warmer too. it was the first source of comfort she had found in the past hour or so. it felt like an eternity. she was not made for this life, no matter how much she would want to stay away from the princess role she had been seemingly assigned at birth. she sat there for a couple minutes, trying her best to recover, and asses her injuries and scratches– they were everywhere. her hands, knees, her legs, her face– her head too? she wiped as much of the dirt and blood with her clothes before she stood up, digging inside her pocket for a lighter to try and walk around, see what this place really was. there wasn’t much of anything, though. a couple tables, empty cans that had probably been there for days, weeks, years, who knew.
thalia wasn’t sure where she was anymore, nor if froggie was anywhere near, if she had fucked up somewhere along the way and was now in unknown territory, but she knew her best bet was to spend the night under a roof, behind a closed door, and so far, the place seemed safe enough, as she tiptoed around what seemed like the living room. the dim light of her fire allowed her to see a door in the furthest corner of the room, one she probably should leave closed as it was, but there was something in her heart, rather than her mind, that told her to go inside. thalia then approached the door as quietly as she could, her hand on the doorknob trying to turn it without making a single sound and then it clicked– the door was open. the blonde took a deep breath and slowly opened it, cringing at the creaking noise it made as it moved and then–
“AAAAAAAAAAAAH!”
thalia screamed from the bottom of her stomach, emptying the air in her lungs as she instinctively threw her lighter at the figure right in front of her (the lighter turning off in the air, thank god). but the light of the moon was shining through one of the windows, and it was not long before she could see the figure’s shape– her features, her hair, her best friend’s face– no. her soulmate right there.
“froggie–” it was not a question, but an affirmation– one that came almost desperate as the shorter girl threw her arms around the outer in surprise, if anything just to make sure she wasn’t dead yet or dreaming or something. “you’re here– fuck. you’re here... i found you.” she held her face for a moment there. she wanted to kiss her again, because whenever the thought of losing her settled in her heart, it was what her deepest desires wanted– to keep her close, to never let her out of sight, never let her go– not without her. “i found you– i’m sorry– please don’t leave,” she pleaded exhaustedly, not just physically but mostly mentally. “please don’t leave me.”
usually it was easier to ignore when thalia made mistakes. she could brush it off with a little giggle, a shrug, or a simple oopsie. it was easy being thalia on the surface, because not many things mattered to her. but that one night, the carnival, feeling death stepping on her and froggie’s heels had put many things in perspective. it had been some kind of surprise than when thalia thought was having her very last few seconds on earth, the only person she thought of was her best friend– except it had been far from friendly the way she wanted her, the way she had held onto her like she was her angel, as if knowing they were together would send them immediately to heaven or valhalla or whatever was beyond their last breath. but then she got scared. and somehow that fear was even more real than the thought of dying together, and it was to keep living, but going separate ways.
tommy would tease the fuck out of her, how he knew it before she even said or did anything, which is why she was holding it a secret from him and everybody else, ernie and stevie included. she was pretending it didn’t even happen, as if it had been some sort of adrenalin dream or something made up in her head, something the edibles provoked, but not a fact. not something she was feeling, even though the memory of it put a pressure on her chest that even she knew somehow, would only get lifted if she kissed the other again. but no. she wouldn’t. she was taking different shifts at work for that reason. she had switched most of her schedule to not see froggie any longer than a quick goodbye or hello, then make up some sort of emergency that couldn’t keep her talking, and every night, when they usually spent hours on the phone, thalia had pretended to be fast asleep. she was coping with things, she would say. she had been more exhausted than normal, she used as an excuse. she had been under too much stress lately– oh, she was getting a cold. she would be fine soon, sorry– can’t come over.
and then she walked in on friday, not expecting to see any familiar face on the morning shift, the one she rarely ever took because everybody hated opening, and she found froggie as she checked in. she had even been slightly late, and froggie seemed to have thought about it as well. it was pointless that the rink was even open this early, nobody showed up, so it was usually spent cleaning up or even napping in the back room couch– smoking a joint if the mood was right. it used to be a fun thing for the two of them, something they did every now and then, and yet, thalia couldn’t say she was looking forward to spending a whole day with nobody but froggie, pretending nothing had happened in the mirror maze. “hey– i didn’t expect to see you here this morning.” thalia said, feigning surprise and joy to see her friend, even if they had barely spoken. “stevie told me you were taking the evening shift, otherwise i would have picked you up on my way here.” she lied, she had just seen the schedule. she just wanted to seem natural, except thalia could not look at froggie properly in the eyes any longer than a second and she was sure it wouldn’t go unnoticed.
starter for froggie ( @horrorbxby )
location: end of the summer carnival
one of the reasons why thalia enjoyed being high was simply because she could blame it all on it. she could be bolder, wilder, louder than she had ever been and then say it was because she had been high, even if the effects were barely there. the interesting thing about edibles was that the time they took to hit was more of a personal thing, so she simply could lie and pretend she had forgotten about the moment she and froggie shared on the very top of the ferris wheel, right before the fireworks started and got them so startled the two of them had almost jumped out of their seats only to be unable to stop laughing until they both stumbled down of the ride. thalia still couldn’t stop laughing as she hooked her arm to her friend’s– she looked at the crowd gathered for the view, and really... it was not exactly her first choice to mix in with the sweat and human smell of a bunch of people, so she dragged froggie towards a different side of the carnival, under the excuse of wanting something to drink.
she was well aware why she had come to this specific side just a few minutes ago, but it seemed the edibles kicked in without her noticing because she was now spinning in circles as she rubbed the back of her head to try and remember. and no, it wasn’t water, she assured froggie a couple times before she covered her ears and shut her eyes real tight to get some real concentration going. “FUCK ME, I KNOW!” thalia yelled, grabbed froggie by the hand and ran towards another booth, one that had been empty all day long, which she had used as her personal storage all night. nobody had noticed. “wait–” she had to check her stuff was still in there. “yes,” she chuckled. “okay– alright, just... close your eyes and don’t open them. promise you won’t.” thalia waited a couple seconds before waving her hand in front of her face to make sure her friend wasn’t cheating. she couldn’t contain her giggles as she reached for the pink bunny plush she had won earlier for her, before froggie had been able to escape work. “okay, hold your hands out– still with your eyes closed! don’t cheat!” she waited again, and placed the plus on her hands slowly, then took a step back to look at her reaction.
