Ghost Story
Soft Serve 3/50 - Vanilla #21. A Dare
with Hot Fudge, Whipped Cream, and Gummies
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : PG
Timeframe : 1245
Word Count : 988
Gummy Bunnies : origfic_bingo "Resurrection" (1 to go for bingo!)
I didn't think I'd have anything to offer for a ghost story, and then I thought DUH - Mabel... So here goes.
Aldo laid his hands on the rim of his form and the little viper coiled in the middle of the ring lifted its head. The boys around him gasped and sighed and uttered appreciative remarks as expected, all except Kinu.
“Snake, huh?” said Kinu.
Aldo fixed him with a glare. Kinu just stared back with those dead grey eyes of his, his expression flat. “I like snakes,” said Aldo. He prodded his new creation with a stick, pushing it back to the center of the ring as it stretched towards the edge. “One point, sharp fangs, what more could you want?”
“Berwyk doesn’t think much of snakes,” said Dayl, with a snicker. A wiry, nervous little thing, useful for his inability to say no to anyone bigger than him, the boy was in his usual position of bobbing up and down at the back of the group, straining to peer over shoulders at the leader’s latest feat.
“Berwyk.” Aldo sneered. “The man thinks squirrels and rabbits are worth raising, but he doesn’t like snakes. Stupid.” He batted at the demon snake again and it lashed out at the stick, clamping its fanged little jaws over the wood.
“Have you seen the thing he keeps in the attic?” said Ril, with the urgent tone that said a story was on its way. He leaned in over the ring to cast a shifty look among the rest.
“No,” said Kinu, turning the same dull look he’d given Aldo over the snake on Ril. “But I’ve heard it. If you pass the stairs late at night, there’s this screaming from up there.”
Slightly crestfallen, as all eyes were now on Kinu and a collective shudder passed through the crowd, Ril sank back into his seat.
“I’ve heard it too,” said Dayl. “It sounds like a woman.”
Still holding the stick with the snake hanging off its end Aldo looked to Kinu again. “You think Berwyk’s got a demon woman in the attic?”
“What?” said Kinu. “The old creep animates anything else he can get his hands on. Why not people?”
“Yeah, I suppose he would, wouldn’t he? But no one’s ever seen it?” He cast a look about the ring that had the lot of them hastily shaking their heads and muttering excuses.
“He keeps the door locked,” said Ril. “I’ve checked,” he added, with a smug look at Kinu.
“He goes up there alone sometimes, with bowls of meat,” said Max.
“Bloody steaks,” Rico added.
“Bits of failed apprentices,” Kinu said, slowly and loudly, leaning back to grin at Kairn, who had picked just that moment to be walking by.
Kairn stopped to gape at the lot of them in confusion. “Huh?”
Aldo leered at him and gave the stick and the dangling snake a wave in his direction. “Better work on your forms, kid, or Berwyk’ll feed you to the monster in the attic.”
Kairn went from looking like he was about to bolt to drawing closer and slowly raising a brow. “You mean Mabel?” he said.
There was a moment of silence as they all stared at the newcomer, and then the boys all erupted in laughter.
“Wait,” said Kinu, when Kairn continued to stand there, unmoving. “He’s serious.”
Aldo tossed the stick and the snake down in the dust and folded his arms across his chest. The demon snake disengaged itself from the stick and slithered out of the ring, where it was promptly stomped on by one of the boys. Busy scowling at Kairn, Aldo scarcely noticed. “Are you telling us you’ve seen this demon woman Berwyk keeps in the attic?”
Kairn raked a hand through his hair. “I, uh, I have…” He started to back away.
“Sit!” Aldo snapped.
Kinu had him by the arm before he could take another step and shoved him to the ground. Kairn took a look at the squashed snake and squirmed as far back as the hand Kinu still had firmly clamped over his arm would let him.
Max leaned in, eyes wide. “Is it really an animated human?”
“Did it try to eat you?” asked Pohl.
Glowering over Aldo’s shoulder at Kairn, Ril asked, “How’d you get in there anyway?”
Aldo hissed at them all to shush.
Kairn looked around the ring with a visible gulp. “I, er… yes, maybe, and, uh, Sethan had the key,” he said, ticking off questions on shaking fingers. “So-”
“I don’t buy it,” said Kinu.
“Huh?”
Kinu turned back to address the crowd. “This,” he said, pulling Kairn up by his hair, “did not go walking into a room with a man-eating demon woman.”
“D-did so. “ Kairn swatted at the fist curled in his hair, his backside hovering a few inches off the ground. “Let go of me!”
“Anything else worthwhile up there?” Aldo asked.
“I-I dunno,” said Kairn, still flailing. “There were sigils on the walls, some bones, some tools. We, er, weren’t there all that long.”
“Probably ‘cause you had to go change when you pissed yourself from fright.” Kinu dropped him in the dust, and Kairn scrambled to pull himself upright and brush himself off,
“You think you’re something special, don’t you?” said Aldo “Poking around in Berwyk’s shit with your creepy little friend.”
“I-I-“
“Prove it,” said Kinu. “Prove you’re not too scared to go back there.”
“Yeah.” Aldo grinned. “Bring me something good. I doubt screaming dead things are all he’s got up there.”
“B-b-but-”
Kinu gave him a smack to the back of his head and Kairn stopped his sputtering and stilled.
“Well?” said Aldo. “Go on, get lost. And next time I see you, you’d better have something to show me.”
With another slap from Kinu, Kairn was off and running. The boys laughed as he tripped and stumbled in his haste to get away.
“That thing’s going to eat him,” said Ril.
“So it’s a win either way,” said Kinu.
“Indeed.” Aldo laughed.
with Hot Fudge, Whipped Cream, and Gummies
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : PG
Timeframe : 1245
Word Count : 988
Gummy Bunnies : origfic_bingo "Resurrection" (1 to go for bingo!)
I didn't think I'd have anything to offer for a ghost story, and then I thought DUH - Mabel... So here goes.
Aldo laid his hands on the rim of his form and the little viper coiled in the middle of the ring lifted its head. The boys around him gasped and sighed and uttered appreciative remarks as expected, all except Kinu.
“Snake, huh?” said Kinu.
Aldo fixed him with a glare. Kinu just stared back with those dead grey eyes of his, his expression flat. “I like snakes,” said Aldo. He prodded his new creation with a stick, pushing it back to the center of the ring as it stretched towards the edge. “One point, sharp fangs, what more could you want?”
“Berwyk doesn’t think much of snakes,” said Dayl, with a snicker. A wiry, nervous little thing, useful for his inability to say no to anyone bigger than him, the boy was in his usual position of bobbing up and down at the back of the group, straining to peer over shoulders at the leader’s latest feat.
“Berwyk.” Aldo sneered. “The man thinks squirrels and rabbits are worth raising, but he doesn’t like snakes. Stupid.” He batted at the demon snake again and it lashed out at the stick, clamping its fanged little jaws over the wood.
“Have you seen the thing he keeps in the attic?” said Ril, with the urgent tone that said a story was on its way. He leaned in over the ring to cast a shifty look among the rest.
“No,” said Kinu, turning the same dull look he’d given Aldo over the snake on Ril. “But I’ve heard it. If you pass the stairs late at night, there’s this screaming from up there.”
Slightly crestfallen, as all eyes were now on Kinu and a collective shudder passed through the crowd, Ril sank back into his seat.
“I’ve heard it too,” said Dayl. “It sounds like a woman.”
Still holding the stick with the snake hanging off its end Aldo looked to Kinu again. “You think Berwyk’s got a demon woman in the attic?”
“What?” said Kinu. “The old creep animates anything else he can get his hands on. Why not people?”
“Yeah, I suppose he would, wouldn’t he? But no one’s ever seen it?” He cast a look about the ring that had the lot of them hastily shaking their heads and muttering excuses.
“He keeps the door locked,” said Ril. “I’ve checked,” he added, with a smug look at Kinu.
“He goes up there alone sometimes, with bowls of meat,” said Max.
“Bloody steaks,” Rico added.
“Bits of failed apprentices,” Kinu said, slowly and loudly, leaning back to grin at Kairn, who had picked just that moment to be walking by.
Kairn stopped to gape at the lot of them in confusion. “Huh?”
Aldo leered at him and gave the stick and the dangling snake a wave in his direction. “Better work on your forms, kid, or Berwyk’ll feed you to the monster in the attic.”
Kairn went from looking like he was about to bolt to drawing closer and slowly raising a brow. “You mean Mabel?” he said.
There was a moment of silence as they all stared at the newcomer, and then the boys all erupted in laughter.
“Wait,” said Kinu, when Kairn continued to stand there, unmoving. “He’s serious.”
Aldo tossed the stick and the snake down in the dust and folded his arms across his chest. The demon snake disengaged itself from the stick and slithered out of the ring, where it was promptly stomped on by one of the boys. Busy scowling at Kairn, Aldo scarcely noticed. “Are you telling us you’ve seen this demon woman Berwyk keeps in the attic?”
Kairn raked a hand through his hair. “I, uh, I have…” He started to back away.
“Sit!” Aldo snapped.
Kinu had him by the arm before he could take another step and shoved him to the ground. Kairn took a look at the squashed snake and squirmed as far back as the hand Kinu still had firmly clamped over his arm would let him.
Max leaned in, eyes wide. “Is it really an animated human?”
“Did it try to eat you?” asked Pohl.
Glowering over Aldo’s shoulder at Kairn, Ril asked, “How’d you get in there anyway?”
Aldo hissed at them all to shush.
Kairn looked around the ring with a visible gulp. “I, er… yes, maybe, and, uh, Sethan had the key,” he said, ticking off questions on shaking fingers. “So-”
“I don’t buy it,” said Kinu.
“Huh?”
Kinu turned back to address the crowd. “This,” he said, pulling Kairn up by his hair, “did not go walking into a room with a man-eating demon woman.”
“D-did so. “ Kairn swatted at the fist curled in his hair, his backside hovering a few inches off the ground. “Let go of me!”
“Anything else worthwhile up there?” Aldo asked.
“I-I dunno,” said Kairn, still flailing. “There were sigils on the walls, some bones, some tools. We, er, weren’t there all that long.”
“Probably ‘cause you had to go change when you pissed yourself from fright.” Kinu dropped him in the dust, and Kairn scrambled to pull himself upright and brush himself off,
“You think you’re something special, don’t you?” said Aldo “Poking around in Berwyk’s shit with your creepy little friend.”
“I-I-“
“Prove it,” said Kinu. “Prove you’re not too scared to go back there.”
“Yeah.” Aldo grinned. “Bring me something good. I doubt screaming dead things are all he’s got up there.”
“B-b-but-”
Kinu gave him a smack to the back of his head and Kairn stopped his sputtering and stilled.
“Well?” said Aldo. “Go on, get lost. And next time I see you, you’d better have something to show me.”
With another slap from Kinu, Kairn was off and running. The boys laughed as he tripped and stumbled in his haste to get away.
“That thing’s going to eat him,” said Ril.
“So it’s a win either way,” said Kinu.
“Indeed.” Aldo laughed.