(Archived) Poth Short Stories and One-Shots

Haunted Memories - Chapter 7 (End)

Chapter Warnings: Implied/referenced abuse, suicidal ideation, swearing

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"Hey-" Rurik called out, freezing when the action produced a full-body flinch as Lotus ducked their skull, their breaths sounding like they were clenching their teeth in anticipation of something. "The guy's gone now," the ghost threw out, frowning at the lack of response. Huffing to himself, he made his way to the bedroom.

Lifting one of the blankets from the bed, the ghost backtracked into the living room and tossed it onto Lotus in a practiced fashion; the skeleton predictably jumped when the fabric made contact, but it succeeded in bringing them back to the here and now just like last time. As the edge of the blanket fell back over their skull like a second hood to reveal two empty sockets, Rurik grumbled, "Now, are you going to tell me what the hell happened there? Was that the guy you were avoiding?" At the mute nod, he growled, "I'm not playing twenty questions; spill already."

Lotus's skull drooped, their sockets pinching at the corners before shaking their skull with a miserable expression. Rurik rolled his eye lights and crossed his arms as he sarcastically claimed, "What, you can't talk?" He would have added more if not for the slow nod that followed; his posture loosened as he mumbled, "You're joking." The monster shrunk down further, their crestfallen expression pointing toward a resounding 'no'. 

Now that he looked closer, Lotus wasn't moving out of what looked to be a pretty uncomfortable sitting position...

Reasoning that the guy from earlier must have done something since Lotus had been fine before their arrival, Rurik hesitantly asked, "This isn't permanent... is it?" The skeleton shook their skull to indicate 'no' once more and he felt a hint of relief... which left him questioning why the confirmation made him happy.

Before he could become enveloped in his thoughts, Lotus's eye light flicked on and the skeleton released a shaky sigh, "It finally wore off."

Feeling as if he would be mimicking the action if he was able to breathe, Rurik probed, "... It... as in the guy's magic?"

"Yeah...," Lotus mumbled, shifting into a tucked sitting position to wrap the blanket around their body like a protective cocoon.

Despite their reluctant body language, Rurik pressed on, "Who was he, anyway?"

"His name's L...," Lotus paused, taking another breath and answering softly, "Lerin. He's... he was my boyfriend. He did a lot of... horrible things; I don't want to go into detail, so don't ask. In any case, I made plans to run away and took the first opportunity that presented itself when he went on a camping trip with his friends."

When the smaller fell silent again, Rurik prompted, "Right... and I'm guessing he did something when he showed up earlier? With how you stood up to me on your first day here, I can't imagine you rolling over and letting him do whatever he wanted like that otherwise."

"Yeah, his voice...," the skeleton shifted uncomfortably, pulling the blanket closer to ward off an invisible chill that ran through him, "he has magic that forces people to do what he wants when he speaks. I don't know much about it; he was actually pretty careful with who he used it on, but I figured out he activates it by using the word 'listen' as a subliminal trigger... after that..." Lotus inhaled sharply, stifling his desire to cry as he dug his fingers into the hem of the blanket, "... any command he verbalizes for the next five minutes can't be refused... I know, I've tried... I tried so hard, so many times to fight it... but it never worked... it never worked..."

Rurik watched as Lotus buried their face in their knees once more; their shoulders shaking from the effort of holding their emotions in. Processing the information was difficult; the power to control others through vocal commands seemed way too surreal and overpowered... but how could he doubt it when he had seen it first-hand? It was no wonder the smaller monster had tried to escape... and would want to again. 

Knowing it was inevitable, he reluctantly asked the damning question, "Guess this means you'll be running again?"

"No...," the smaller croaked, their skull tilting up to reveal a far-off expression Rurik didn't like; one of despair and resignation, "There's no point. The only reason I got away before was because I carefully planned and took him by surprise... but it wasn't good enough. Even after everything I did, it only took him a month to track me down." Tears welled up in the Lotus's sockets, threatening to spill over by the barest of margins as they let out a broken laugh, "The job reference is probably what screwed me over, but I can't survive on my own without a job. 

"I don't have enough money to start over again and he knows it... it's only a matter of time before he comes back to get me. All he has to do is say one word and I'll be forced to go back... I'll be forced to... to..." Lotus clenched their teeth alongside their sockets, hugging their legs tighter as the blanket drooped down over their skull, partially hiding the tears that finally fell, "... I can't run, I can't hide, and I can't fight back... as long as I'm alive, I'll never be free."

A prominent disquiet settled within Rurik as he stared at the quietly sobbing skeleton's tears soaking into the blanket. He knew he shouldn't feel pain, but watching Lotus lose hope hurt in a way he never expected to ever feel again; it made him realize that he didn't want Lotus to leave or give up, not like he did... but how could he possibly bring them back from something like this and make them feel safe again...? 

Wracking his skull for ideas, inspiration struck as his starry eye lights caught sight of the knife embedded in the wall across the room, sending him flying into the bedroom; stopping short of the dresser, he quickly found the two items he needed and brought them back out to the living room. "Hey, you said I could leave the building if I possessed stuff, right?" the ghost asked, presenting one of the items, "Would this work?"

Lotus glanced up in confusion at the stainless steel dog tags dangling from their matching chain, wiping his face on his sleeve while replying cautiously, "Yeah... as long as it's a personal belonging or something of sentimental value, any object that isn't silver-based will work as a temporary vessel... why?"

"You might not be able to ignore the guy's magic, but I didn't seem to have any problem kicking his ass while he was squawking," Rurik stated with a smirk, "Teach me how to possess this and carry it around; in return, I can deal with the guy no matter where or how many times he shows up." Tossing the second object to the floor, he ignored the startled response when it clattered at the smaller's feet, "you should start carrying this around too so I have something to threaten him with."

Tearing their dim eye light away from the sheathed knife laying on the floor, Lotus softly inquired, "... Why are you offering to help me? I thought you wanted me gone."

"You want your freedom and I want to see something other than the inside of this crummy building; doing this kills two birds with one stone," the ghost shrugged nonchalantly, unwilling to reveal the truth behind his motivations; he would rather let them believe his offer was centered around opportunistic desires. Lowering the chain within the reaper's reach, he asked, "Do we have a deal?"

"Alright... I'll agree to your trade." Holding their hand out, the tags were dropped onto Lotus's cupped fingers; the chain spilled over the sides as the beginnings of a smile finally broke through, "Thank you for helping me."

More than a little flustered at the genuine show of gratitude, Rurik pressed in closer while trying not to let it show on his face, "Sure, whatever; now let's get down to this possession thing."

Lightly snorting, Lotus extended the arm holding the tags and began their instructions, "Alright, the first thing we need to do is..."

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Word Count: 1,375