Forty-four buttons

[explorationist]

[Sup Paradisa. Have the annoying, never-ending tap tap tap of a pen on the journal.

...

...]

Guys, I'm bored. Talk to me. What's the best game in the gameroom? What's your favorite color? Do any of you know what a dowsing rod is?

Come on, humor me.

Comments

[ectobabble]

Sure I know what a dowsing rod is, kiddo! ... T'be honest, I'm kinda surprised you do, too.

[explorationist]

Do you think they really work? And meh, it's surprising what all I know.

[ectobabble]

It depends on the type'a wood used, I think. And the PKE of the person trying to do the dowsing ... and the area ... it's all really subjective. But there's been research into it that shows that it can work under the right psychokinetic conditions!

[explorationist]

Poison oak worked to find a well by my house...

[ectobabble]

Poison oak?! Holy crap, Coraline, I hope you had gloves!

[explorationist]

Ahaha. No. Wybie told me it was poison oak after I'd been holding it for a while.

[ectobabble]

Oh, ouch. [she can't see the wince, but she can probably hear it] That's no fun. ... It found the well anyway though, huh? You must've lived in a place with a lot of metaphysical energy. Was there a haunted house anywhere nearby?

[explorationist]

I found out mud helps, though. I guess it had a lot of... meta-who-a-whaty energy. There was a ring of mushrooms around it. And... I guess my house was haunted? With the beldam and all.

[ectobabble]

Rings of mushrooms are usually signs of a strong connection to ethereal planes or other supernatural phenomena ... they're usually connected to fairies ...

[and then his brain catches up with his mouth and he realizes she just mentioned something kinda important]

The beldam?! So you --- wait, you were the one who ...

[there's the sound of pages flipping as he goes back through his journal. oh, right, he'd filtered all his crazy kid-stealing-creature research AWAY from the kids]

Yeah, I saw that you'd mentioned her in the journal a couple times. So ... you actually saw her?!

[explorationist]

Fairies, huh? That's strange.

[Hmph sound] Well, people need to know about her! Especially kids. I don't want to have to explain another million times if she somehow finds her way here. Yes. All... er. Three forms.

[ectobabble]

I'm glad you're trying to keep people up to speed on her - that's a really good strategy. ... I wonder if that could be something we could get people to do: write up stuff on potentially dangerous people from their worlds, in case they show up.

.... Three forms? Really? Wow, she's gotta be really powerful, then. Not a lot of supernatural entities can claim multiform status. What'd she change into?

[explorationist]

I just think it's help a lot if she came here so people won't have to scramble to figure out all of her weaknesses and stuff. That would be a really good idea.

She wasn't all that powerful. Her first form was basically my mom with button eyes, her second was taller and more... I don't know, spider-like? The last was this thing made of bones with needles for hands.

[ectobabble]

I'll make a note to bring it up at the next Peace Patrol meeting, then... as for her not being very powerful? It takes a lot of energy just for a creature to change form, sometimes. She might've been doing it as sort of a last ditch effort....

[explorationist]

Thanks, Ray. And yeah, but I still don't get why she went so far just to get a meal.

[ectobabble]

Maybe she was malnourished? I mean, I'm not tryin' to make a case for the defense here or anythin'. It's just a thought.

[explorationist]

Yeah, considering she only ate three other kids before me. That's a good thing.