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[nepcnthes]

"Is it strange or merely what you're unaccustomed to?" The distinct accent in the other's voice was immediately tuned into — over time and wear, their accent had faded considerably, adjusting to a more nondescript inflection that was murky, at best. An illusion, a mish-mash of their adventures across the world and peering into what they considered to be other realms. Still, the perspective of others was endlessly fascinating to them, seeing others through the lens of a camera for a living and carrying their loyal Kodak around with them within arm's reach, to that day. "Ah, you're from Dublin. I suppose crime rate here could be more of a culture shock, is it not?" Then, after a moment, their head tilted, curiosity piqued by the brusque manner with which she spoke. "Riddle me this... How you can be riveted by the tale of humanity's pitfalls, but bored at the same time? What is your life missing, do you think?"

[wondererfm]

shrugging her shoulders at their words, orla sighed. "two things can be true at the same time." it was both strange and something she wasn't used to - the two could be put together and the fact that people were trying to pass it off as the norm was quite concerning. "dublin's got plenty of crime though, petty crime and the occasional- big one, you know? not really people killing their parents or something." orla couldn't believe what had transpired - how did that even happen? from what she could gather, they were a sweet person and had snapped - what would this town do to her if she stayed. still, if she weighed up everything, staying here was better than leading her mediocre life from her parents' house; she could lead her mediocre life in a murder town now. "guess it's part of growing up or some shit like that? not really sure on that end but i don't really think anyone has the answers. not here, anyways." she sighed. "this experience has put me off true crime, that's for sure." whilst it didn't directly involve her, it was a reminder to orla that she had to be smart and keep her wits about her.

[hvppyending]

krisik gave the other a side-eye, biting his tongue from saying anything further. “ya fuckin’ think?” well, you’d speculate they were trying not to do that. he had moved here for someone, yet he was greeted with an intensity that felt like a damn fever dream. after hearing the news about dr. moschetti and the turmoil it caused their family, and not to mention the town, they thought it felt off... he was consistently on edge, though. “and that makes two of us,” kris paused, pointing his index finger at them, and then it occurred to him that it could be disrespectful so he pointed at the ground awkwardly. there was no doubt it’s interesting—true crime, that is—but being in the middle of it was not comforting, for lack of a better word. “if it makes you feel better, i moved here back in november last year... so if anything, you’re not alone, because i have no fucking idea i fear.”

[wondererfm]

finally! orla thought as her eyes widened and she gave a stern nod. "exactly! the way everyone just goes on about their day, which i get to an extent, people have to work and carry on but the way everything feels totally abnormal is a bit weird, like people are trying too hard to ignore it." apparently it happened all the time? were people not concerned? "okay, so!" she pointed in the others direction. "if you've been here since november, what have a missed and how many creepy things have gone on because everyone's saying it's... normal?" frowning, the young woman shook her head - that concept left her completely dumfounded with what was potentially going on behind closed doors but also in the public streets. "granted, everywhere has its share of it and there was plenty in dublin but that's a city. surely this shouldn't be happening in towns? thought this was supposed to be a 'nothing bad ever happens here' sort of little town but i guess i was fucking mistaken."

[moonrivcr]

You'd think the years of performance or learning to work with wild animals, both big and small, would've made Willa impervious to the sin of being oblivious to the world around her, but alas, that didn't seem to be the case. Though she could easily stand her ground against an elephant, had learned to pick up on signs of danger long before they had a chance to materialize, she was still surprised to learn that Anchorage had such darkness lurking beneath the surface. Still, with all of the steely determination that she could muster, she tried to look for a silver lining. "Maybe it's a little strange, but it's not all bad," she reasoned, gazing up at the neon sign for the bowling establishment with a grin, the promise of her siblings inside lifting her spirits. "There's plenty of fun stuff to do around here, and lots of nice people. You just can't let yourself get carried away by the bad. Otherwise, we'd never leave the house. And what kind of life is that?" Stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jean skirt, Willa shrugged, brazen at the naivety of her admission. Was there something wrong with her that she wouldn't let the recent news dampen her spirits? "That's just me, though. I haven't had a home base in a long time, so I'm just happy to be here with my family."

[wondererfm]

the other's optimism takes orla by surprise but she's acutely aware that she's always been a bit of a pessimist. perhaps if she had been more positives, she wouldn't have had so many run ins with her parents over the years. it had been best for her to move here to be closer to angela so that they could guide her but she'd not really found her footing yet in this town. "a lot strange." her eyes widened as she insisted on correcting her to fit with her narrative. "but i suppose you're right. i work at the last pin standing, the bowling alley - a lot of people seem to have fun there but i think it's my own personal version of hell." orla chuckled, knowing that she was being dramatic about it - there were a lot worse jobs out there than working there but it wasn't something she wanted to do for forever. "what's your name? and how long have you been here?" she should have probably held back on the second question to allow the other to answer but she wanted to decipher if the other had rose coloured glasses on or not.

[wondererfm]

@anchoragestarters (outside last pin standing- the bowling alley, on her break).

"yeah, i'm calling it now, this town is fuckin' weird." orla had dreamed of moving in with angela for years, of getting away from her parents that she only seemed to disappoint but then, after a couple of months, there had been a murder incident between family members? "you know, i love a bit of true crime and all that but not when i'm here-" she pointed to the ground. "- in that fuckin' town." it was a fair admission. "i mean, did i really leave dublin for this or does it get fun from time to time?" what had happened was disturbing but the young irish woman didn't want to show that learning about it had affected her and caused so much worry about the people that resided here.

[cfmysteries]

who : @anchoragestarters where : outside the the anchorage daily diem building when : february 26th cap : 0/4

ZELIHA'S TOP PRIORITY WOULD ALWAYS BE THEIR PODCAST. Their friends knew this, the few members of their family they still spoke to knew this, and the joke could be made that the investigator was married to their job and would never wed anyone else as they were so loyally devoted to it above all else. Upset enough with the latest published newspaper, and that stupid Steve on the radio being able to report on the arrest before themselves, they had resorted to extreme, and petty, measures to station outside of the office and intervene anyone who could possibly be going to give a quote to the paper instead of their podcast, the rightful broadcaster of all that was going on in Anchorage, at least in their chocolate hues. When a passerby who looked as if they could have possibly been on their way to entering the office of their enemy appeared, they eagerly pounced, despite the possibility of it being presumptive. "You wouldn't happen to have any opinion on the recent arrest that was announced, would you?" Unlike official avenues of reporting, there was no need for Zeliha to stay partial nor point their questioning in a leading direction. "Crazy we were shown such a sketch for weeks just for it to be her daughter. Do you think the rumors about it being a false arrest could hold any weight?"

[wondererfm]

"umm-" orla looked wide eyed towards them and then to the side as she crossed her arms. this was 'wild', she hardly knew any of these people and everything had happened so fast. "i-" she was trying to take this seriously but didn't think her opinion held any weight. orla had been here for a few months to be with her sister - little did she know she'd slipped into the thunder dome. "don't think i do, honestly." she shrugged, hands falling out of her pockets for a second. why did people love to discus atrocities so much in this town? "you're askin' me if i think they killed their mother?" she shrugged. " i don't know that fuckin' family, i'm just tryin' to get back from a really shit shift at the bowling alley, yeah?" she'd never met the deceased, may have seen rosalind pass by from time to time but not enough to cast judgement on anything. "are you actually always like this?" the irish woman raised her eyebrows. "going around? seeing who'll talk to you to try get some sort o' dirt or something, i don't fucking know. all sounds like a bad situation, yeah?"

[cfstvlla]

EYES WERE SQUINTED FOR ONLY A MOMENT before the brunette gave a nod of understanding regarding needing to leave a place of work as quickly as possible. She practically hightailed it out of the diner or bar at the end of a shift, especially when she had the thought of her fiancé waiting on her at home on her mind. "Can't blame you there, not wanting to be around coworkers." It was only when she was working a shift alongside Cyrek she knew any relief from such a hardship. "I can recommend one of the pieces of pie, though, 'less you not looking for that. Those are made every morning by people who actually know what the hell they're doing." The slight wasn't hidden at all, though she had already made her annoyance with the cook obvious, now she was just driving the point home out of pettiness. It was a quality so carved into her bones that it would never change; once Stella Matthews was scorned, no matter the degree, no inkling of forgiveness would ever be offered. "I'm actually the milk and sugar regarding coffee." She let a beat of silence pass between the two, almost challenging a further comment that compared her to the coworker she had been so open about making complaints of, before adding, "I'll put it 'nother cup, let you add it yourself." Her expression melted into one of amusement, possibly a bit sick, at the question. "Fresh meat," a breath left her nose, not handling the topic with any of the sensitivity many would say it deserved. "If you think this being the second hacking that's happened in less than three months then," A shrug fell off her shoulders, as if it finished her sentence for her. "Would you call that often?"

[wondererfm]

"co-workers and customers of a certain age-" her brow raised as she extended her finger to solidify her point. orla wasn't the most customer friendly person in the world but she needed a job that would offer shift work for money and then she'd decide what she'd do from there. she hadn't been here long but at least she was with andrea and out of the smothering household in dublin. "think i'll just take a coffee, thanks. maybe cop a pack of crisps, or as you lot say, 'chips', on the way back. unless i can get a coffee and some chips here, that'd be convenient." orla shrugged. slightly disappointed with the choices but if she was being honest, she couldn't expect much at this hour. "so, the coffee and i get to add me own milk... perfect!" orla shuffled in the booth crossing her legs. "well, fuck. that's pretty often." eyes widened as she let out a massive sigh. perhaps coming here was a mistake but it felt so much better to be away from home right now in her life. "shit. i bet you all have your own murder mystery and podcast and everything... not into that shit but... fuck me!" she widened her eyes again and chuckled, shaking her head. "that's tough. far too tough for you to be taking my coffee order."

[cfstvlla]

where : buttermilk sky pie diner  when : january 24th  who : @anchoragestarters cap : 0/5

"GONNA BE REAL WITH YOU, this cook is on the last forty minutes of his shift, and you're gonna wanna wait this one out 'til the next clocks in. Wouldn't eat a piece of toast made by that guy." It probably wasn't good for business to be openly suggesting against the purchase of food, at least for the mentioned allotted time range, but the brunette had never been a stellar employee, evidenced by her inability to keep a job where it wasn't her future mother-in-law calling the shots for much longer than a couple of months, the most recent on the long list having her stationed and bored out of her mind behind the host stand of the diner. Her time on the clock could've been better spent than pestering one of the few customers who were seated in the establishment, like the list of tasks including sweeping, wiping down windows, or filling the salt and pepper shakers that she was given to fill pause in patrons, but she hadn't paid it a bit of mind since her first day on the job. Her hazel eyes turned towards the open window into the kitchen that ready orders were sat upon, squinting a bit with disdain as they lingered before her gaze turned back. "Think he looks enough like that sketch that's been plastered all over the news to throw in a fake tip pointing them his way? Not like the police are doing shit else with their time, and I gotta let 'im know some way that he's messing with the wrong person if he's gonna run his mouth 'bout me being late."

[wondererfm]

orla had just got off her shift at the bowling alley when she decided to go over to the diner but as time passed, she was quickly regretting it. "right." she let out a heavy, dramatic sigh at the other's words. "i would have been better just getting something at my work then but i couldn't enjoy a fuckin' pizza without those kids giving me a moment of peace, or the other workers, to be fucking honest with you." the last few nights, orla hadn't really slept well or at all given the recent events. "i'll have a coffee, black if no one can be trusted with the milk." she had been here for two months and there had already been a murder... it was a weird town, for sure. she wanted to be closer to her sibling, had waited until she could legally drink to come to the states (and because her parents were growing sick of her constantly being home) but now she was thinking if she'd made a mistake. "does..." orla shuffled in her seat. "- this stuff happen often?" the question was posed out of pure curiosity as she had to remember things would be no better in dublin - it was just a city where bad things happened as opposed to a town.