[OPEN] you don't need treats and you don't need tricks

[deadthing]

WHO: Noah Czerny & YOU!
WHERE: around De Chima
WHEN: early-mid September
WHAT: first day of work at 2Spooky, tasty frozen treats, adjusting
WARNINGS: references to being dead (non-graphic)



spooky scary skeletons

[The paperwork Noah was given on arrival informs him (once he finally thinks to check it) that he has a part-time job at the 2Spooky Costume Shop and his first shift is- uh, today. Oops. At first he's kind of miffed about it, to be honest—like, yeah sure, put the (formerly?) dead guy in a Halloween shop with the rest of the ghosts. Super funny. Ha ha. But actually, it seems like a pretty cool place to work?

He's supposed to be tidying one of the displays, but what he's doing is pressing the buttons on all the light-up skulls and crystal balls and pumpkins and messing around with costume accessories, trying them on and putting them back.

When the door to the shop opens, it triggers a recording of a witch cackling. It makes him jump every. single. time. Including this one! Noah turns around sheepishly to face the new customer, still wearing an over-sized pair of neon purple plastic shutter shades.]

—Um, hi, welcome to 2Spooky Costumes. What- [sigh] spookwear can I help scare you into today?

[The slogan kind of sucks? But he has to say it.]



way more than 31 flavors

[Adjusting to eating food again has been kind of a strange experience. Like, he's thrilled about it. Practically made himself sick the first night stuffing his face. But it feels like a novelty, not a necessity, and Noah has a hard time remembering when he should eat, how often, how much. He forgot what hunger felt like and now it takes him by surprise.

This isn't one of those times though. Noah is just out cautiously exploring the neighborhood and, hey, there's an ice cream shop and he hasn't had ice cream in forever.

The sheer number of flavors on offer is overwhelming though. He spends a good, long time just staring at them, reading the names. There's the normal stuff, of course - chocolate, strawberry, cookie dough - plus quite a few more unique options. He wants to try all of them eventually, but for now...]

I can't decide between pink lemonade pop rocks, cheeze-y crunch, or blue mint.



don't need no hallows eve

[Noah doesn't like reverting to his ghost form. He can do it consciously if he tries, which he usually doesn't, but it also seems to happen when he's startled or overwhelmed. It's like he's just returning to the state he's meant to be in. The universe setting itself right. That probably isn't true and all he needs is some practice, but that's how it feels. Especially since regaining his human body is harder and he's still getting the hang of it.

In fact, that's what he's trying to do right now.]

Come on, come on...

[He's sitting on the ground with his knees pulled to his chest trying to will himself solid and alive. He isn't see-through or anything like that, but it's hard to focus on him. Hard to remember what he looks like even while staring right at him. The bag of spilled groceries beside him looks so much more real than he does.]



wildcard

[Something else in mind? Go for it! Prose or brackets, I will match styles. You can contact me on plurk (onedumbjoke) or discord (onedumbjoke#3658) if you want to plot stuff. Permissions for ghost telepathy here if you're so inclined.]

Comments

Spooky scary skeletons 💀

[perfectlyhuman]

[ He probably shouldn’t be around De Chima at this time. Not with the stories of a monster wandering around, but, to be quite honest, he’s not that worried about it. In fact, he’s actually a little curious. That Bow guy’s doll looked really cool, and Adam can’t help but to wonder what the real thing looks like.

But that’s not why he’s in town, or why he walks into the shop. He was looking to visit one of his friends, and the costume shop definitely got his attention, as one could expect from an imaginative young boy.

Making sure his dog’s leash is securely tied to something outside, he's greeted by the witch cackling when he was in and he smiles, finding Noah soon after.]

Hi. Is this place new?

[deadthing]

[Noah is a little less embarrassed once he sees that the person who walked in on him goofing around is a kid. He still takes the glasses off though.]

I'm actually not sure. It's my first day and I've only been in town, uh- in this world, I guess, for like a week?

[There are a ton of costumes, not just for Halloween, so it seems like more than a seasonal pop-up at least.]

[perfectlyhuman]

[ He definitely wants to check out all the costumes and decorations and toys, and he does actually, somehow, have some money to waste, but Noah's answer catches his attention. ]

Oh, you're new? [ Well, the boy's only been here a month, so it's not like he's a long time resident. ] I'm an imPort too.

[ That still feels really weird to say. ]

[deadthing]

Yeah.

[ImPort, right, that's the word. It's strange for Noah too, thinking about himself that way.]

That's cool. Do you... like it here?

[perfectlyhuman]

[ He rarely uses that word, ever, but it just sounds easier sometimes.

At Noah's question he just...thinks. Then scrunches his lips to the side and shrugs. ]

I guess it's not so bad.

[ For a place you get kidnapped to and just dumped there. But maybe he's just lucky he found somewhere here he already knew. ]

Lots of people are really nice. You know, people like us. That ended up here.

[deadthing]

[Sounds about right. Noah wouldn't be all that thrilled about it either except... well, except that he's alive again. He's hesitant to think of it as a second chance yet - it feels too new, too fragile - but it means his perspective is different from the people who have a life to go back to.]

Everyone I've met so far seems okay, yeah. [Not that... that's been a lot of people.]

I'm Noah, by the way. [Says it right there on his nametag too, next to a cartoon-y ghost.]

[perfectlyhuman]

I'm Adam. [ A casual introduction in a casual conversation during a very not casual situation. And very unconventional people. Maybe they'll both find that about each other. Or they won't. ] Nice to meet you.

[ The boy looks around. ]

You work in a really cool place.

31 flavors

[fursleuth]

[Down by his feet there's a 1'4 yellow mouse with a child-sized cone of coffee ice cream. He stops midway through licking it and slowly looks up.]

Well, cheez-y crunch just sounds vile. Is that cheese-flavored ice cream? I'm offended on behalf of dairy products everywhere. Some things were not meant to be combined just because they came from the same basic place. Yikes.

[deadthing]

[Wow, judgy. Noah looks down at the strange talking mouse creature—weird, but he's used to weird, so he takes it in stride—and shrugs.]

I think the ice cream part is normal, it's more like the toppings? They put cheese doodles and stuff in it.

[It's basically mascarpone ice cream with cheeto dust on top and crunchy puffed corn bits (also cheesy) throughout. Radioactive orange, a teen boy's dream. It probably is gross, but that's half the fun.]

[fursleuth]

Was that supposed to make it more appetizing? [The judgmental face intensifies and he goes back to his own delicious coffee-flavored cone.] I say go for it. I wanna see the look on your face when those flavors do not mix at all.

[deadthing]

[Well, he kind of has to now that he's been dared by an oversized yellow rat.]

Fine. [Noah goes ahead and orders two scoops and opts for the special cheese cone. When the cashier hands it over, he takes a full-on bite.]

—Augh.

[He forgot about brainfreeze.]

[fursleuth]

Oooh. Yeah, you gotta watch that. Take small bites, kid. [The oversized yellow rat is a cheeky little shit.] Enthusiasm is a fickle mistress.

[deadthing]

[At least the discomfort is short-lived. It's not even such a terrible thing—ice cream headaches are a part of being alive.]

...I forgot that could happen. It's been a while.

[He prods the still-somewhat-chilly roof of his mouth with his tongue, oddly pleased to note the temperature difference, and raises the cone again for a more careful taste.] Huh.

[Now that he isn't too distracted to taste it, it's not bad. Salty-sweet.]

( don't need no hallows eve )

[melodramagic]

[ Sabrina would have liked to explore the Porter cities on her own, but Salem absolutely refused to allow her to without his company, so she had very little choice in the end. The two wander down the busy De Chima street, arguing with one another, though to non-magical or demonic folk it looks to be a very one-sided conversation. ]

It's fine now, Salem. The Mandrake hasn't come for me and I'm pretty certain it's because she's gone, but even if she did? I have my... oh!

[ She feels her heel catch something and she almost stumbles, stopping in place to look down at what she's stepped on. A can of food for one, but when she follows where it rolled from, she spots a boy on the ground... or she thinks she does. One second it feels as if he isn't there, then the next there is.

And as always, it's her inclination to determine what the issue is. ]

... hey, are you okay?

[deadthing]

[Oh- she can see him? Normal people usually can't when he's like this, so she must be an... imPort? Noah looks up at her with a faintly miserable expression. His face is smudgy.]

I'm fine. I just suck at this.

[melodramagic]

[ He doesn't look to be in great spirits (pun not quite intended), which makes it harder for Sabrina to simply wander off, calling it a day. She gets as close to him as possible, forgetting the concept of personal space in that moment, squatting to the ground so she can get a better look at this face.

The black cat follows behind her, poking his head forward so he can also look at Noah. ]

Your body is... [ Not quite incorporeal, but it's puzzling to her. ] What do you mean you "suck at this"?

[deadthing]

[He leans back a little, but his own sense of personal space has been skewed for a while and he's distracted with trying to get his body together so it's not a very dramatic reaction.]

I have a body, um, a living one. But I'm not used to it anymore, so I keep- [a vague gesture fills the pause as he struggles to describe what exactly keeps happening and settles on] -slipping out. And then it's hard to get back.

[Making his spirit form more solid, more human, is something he understands, but returning to living flesh isn't about drawing energy from the environment. It has more to do with his mental state.]

[melodramagic]

You're a spirit.

[ Sabrina is a touch surprised, but not shocked by the idea that someone could be anything but human. Then again, her unusually platinum coloured hair and a black cat by her side might indicate she's not your average local either as Noah suspected earlier. ]

Is there any way I can help?

[deadthing]

[His best friend has a raven familiar so the cat doesn't even register as odd - at least, not yet. He nods when she calls him a spirit and remains silent for a moment, considering.]

...I don't know. Maybe.

Can I- [god this is going to be a weird question but he forges ahead before he loses his nerve] Can I feel your pulse?

don't need no hallows eve

[sathan]

( as far as she'd heard the spirits of these places seemed to only ever be in jeopardy. but as she passes on this street, pausing in curiosity at the person curled on the floor-- well, she certainly isn't in jeopardy )

What are you doing?

( a-- spirit sitting in the middle of the street? that wasn't common even to her )

[deadthing]

[Noah startles at that and raises his head. Everyone else has been walking past without so much as a glance, like they don't even see him. They probably can't. He's (unfortunately) used to it.]

Trying to, um- stop being a ghost. It's tricky. I never remember how I did it the last time.

[sathan]

( that makes her pause because-- huh? she hasn't heard that one before )

Being a ghost is optional?

( has he astral projected and been out here too long? )

[deadthing]

Only since I got here.

[Somehow - and he doesn't really understand it himself - coming through the Porter made him alive again. Mostly.]

[sathan]

( --very unusual )

You're a spirit. Or were before they-- resurrected you?

( a resurrection that didn't entirely go to plan? )

[deadthing]

Yeah. [He crosses and uncrosses his arms round his knees then finally rests his hands atop them. None of those positions look natural or comfortable.]

I don't know what they did. It's not supposed to work like this.

[Apparently returning to this state is a 'superpower' which is... a pretty messed-up spin to put on being a murder victim.]