AN: Hey, Fanfiction! I have been a fan of AHS since Season 1 premiered, and an avid consumer of all things Supernatural (the tv show, for my folks not in the know), so I decided to do a not-crossover and just smush 'em together! Hope you like it, any comments, concerns, constructive criticisms, please leave a review and follow and favorite! Thank you so much for taking the time to review/read/whatever my story. :)
Just so you, dear reader, knows: Maryam is 26, Tobi is 17, and Aaron is 14. And the entire chapter is Tobi's POV. And if you want to know what she looks like, the model I chose for the cover is who I picture her to be.
DISCLAIMER: Did you recognize it from another fandom? Yes? Then it doesn't belong to me. However, the plot of this story and my OCs do, thank very much
Third Person (Tobi's) POV
"So run by me again why we're moving to a haunted house." Maryam sighed, rolling her eyes at her little sister's antics.
"For the last time, Tobi…" Tobi grinned at her from the rearview mirror, flicking a piece short dark brown hair out of her eyes. She looked out the car window, watching the houses and neighborhoods pass by.
'It's just such a ridiculous plan, I just love to hear you say it out loud." Her older sister glanced at the teenage boy sitting next to her in the carseat, earbuds in and oblivious to the exchange around him.
"Aaron, do you think my 'plan' is ridiculous?" At the sound of his name, Tobi's little brother glanced up, removing an earbud. The tinny sound of Gerard Way's voice blasted through the '67 Chevy Impala*. She scowled, her dark eyes glaring at the person she was unfortunately related to.
"Dude, this is like the worst possible time you could be listening to MCR." He glared at the girl sitting next to him, snapping back a retort.
"Well you certainly weren't complaining last night."
"Yeah, 'cause last night I had three burgers at In N' Out and was out cold."
"GUYS. Your little spats are amusing and everything, but I have to drive, remember?" Tobi and Aaron fell silent, reminiscing the last time they'd argued in the car and how Maryam hadn't noticed the car behind them until it smashed into the Impala's rear bumpers, damaging their precious baby.
"For the record, I do think this plan is ridiculous. Logically speaking, it's insane to try and spend a year living on top of the Hellmouth while clearing out said Hellmouth." His older sister glowered at him from the driver's seat before speaking.
"Would you rather we move back to Night Vale*?" Tobi jumped in, leaning forward to peer at her sister in the front row.
"At least in Night Vale* we wouldn't have been living in a haunted mansion on top of a rip in the fabric of space and time."
"Are you trying to tell me the dog park* was just a normal play space for canine companions?" Aaron murmured something in response while Tobi fell silent. She fiddled with her leather jacket, absentmindedly fingering the angelic sigil of protection embroidered in the lining just over her heart.
Her sister turned a street corner, and the infamous Murder House came into view, intimidating and overwhelming in the bright Californian sunlight.
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To explain, Tobi Ackerman, age 17, is a hunter. Of the supernatural variety. Her and her siblings drive motel to motel, tracking and killing any creature, demonic, vampiric, or otherwise that decided to snack on humans like potato chips. She'd seen a lot of lovely and not-so lovely in her short life of 17 years, and nothing short of full frontal disbowlment could faze her.
Somehow, this old, rickety house managed to do it. This "vintage 1920s" Victorian manor sent shivers down her spine, made her want to pull her jacket and flannel tighter around her, clench her protective amulets a little harder, stay outside and away in the warm sunlight for just a little while longer.
Of course, anybody would be scared if they knew that this particular house was built on a Hellmouth.
A Hellmouth was a rip in the fabric of this dimension. Demons, monsters, spirits, and unimaginable terrors could crawl out of the depths of Hell and run wild on this Earth. Each one, when found, had to be constantly manned by a Hunter, or a Slayer of some sort. You know, to ensure the unholy didn't decide to attack Earth like a $9.99 All You Can Eat Buffet.
And after detecting an increase in supernatural activity around this particular suburb of L.A., her sister decided it was their family's turn to do their Hunter duty and guard a Hellmouth. Tobi and Aaron were pulled out of their brand new school after 3 months of attendance (the normal routine for those underage in this particular occupation), and Maryam stocked up on extra occult supplies and various holy guns, knives, and what-have-you's. Within the week, her older sister signed the deed of ownership papers and their little family dragged itself from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Los Angeles, California.
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Tobi forced herself out of the old black car, propping herself against the truck for a moment to look at her new home. The mansion loomed over them, almost sucking the light out of the driveway wherever its' shadow touched the pavement.
A woman neatly dressed in a burgundy suit stepped off the porch, making her way towards her sister.
"Is that the 'terrifyingly enthusiastic' real estate agent?" She stage whispered. Maryam let out a chuckle, grinning conspiratorily.
"Why don't you find out for yourself?" Her older sister nudged her towards the lady coming to greet them. Tobi backpedaled quickly, shifting out of Maryam's grasp and instead pushing Aaron forward.
"He volunteers as tribute!" He scampered away from her, accidentally bumping into the realtor who'd made it all the way to their car.
"Why hello!" The lady reached out and firmly grasped Maryam's hand whil Aaron and Tobi froze in place. Her sister smiled, returning the shake before pushing her younger siblings forward.
"It's great to see you again Marcy. May I introduce my younger brother and sister? That's Aaron, and this is Tobi." Her sister was always the charming one, Tobi internally muttered before putting on a clearly fake smile and reaching out to shake the woman's outstretched hand.
The adults drifted off ahead to look at the house while Tobi and her brother decided to look around the grounds. She popped open the trunk of the Impala, quickly grabbing an extra satchet of rock salt* for Aaron (who seemed to loose his like some people loose socks) and a few blessed iron* knives.
"Maybe we should take some silver dimes and a shotgun or two? I mean, literally anything could be in that house." Her brother peered over her shoulder at the stash of weapons in the car that could supply a small militia.
"You just want an excuse to pull out your new double barreled, don't you." He grinned, hair flopping into his eyes and plaid collar popped.
"I plead the fifth." She rolled her eyes before grabbing her original model Winchester rifle and Aaron's first double barrel shotgun. Flicking the safety off and making sure both guns were loaded with rock salt shells, she handed the shotgun to her brother, handle up.
"Remember if Marcy The Real Estate Agent catches us with these, Mary's gonna make Hell seem like a trip to the candystore." He nodded eagerly, stashing the gun in a spare, pentagram* embossed leather holster. Tobi slung her rifle over her shoulder, adjusting her leather jacket and flannel to conceal it.
"Alright, let's rock."
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After doing the typical perimeter patrol, sprinkling salt and Four Thieves vinegar* on the ground whenever Marcy The Unnaturally Perky Lady wasn't looking and Maryam gave them the go ahead, the brother and sister pair snuck back to their car. Quickly tossing the extra gear they hauled around the property back into the bottomless trunk, they joined their sister in the foyer of their new abode.
Tobi smiled to herself at the covert line of salt already layed down in the doorway. Maryam may have been playing nice for the Muggle, but at least she wasn't gonna let demons and ghosts into the house for no airs and graces. She stuck her head into the room where Marcy was displaying a set of lovely, disturbing, demonic murals partially covered up by decaying wall paper to her older sister.
"Should I call the cleaners?" Her sister looked up from the papers she was signing, smiling at seeing her.
"Yeah, go ahead. If you don't mind, Marcy, I'd like to have the house cleaned out before sundown." The woman nodded indulgently.
"Of course. As the new owners of the house, you may dispose of its contents as you wish. May I suggest a storage where previous owners have placed unwanted furniture?" Her older sister held up a hand, dismissing the offer.
"Oh, there's no need. We already have movers who specialize in removal. Everything in this house that isn't attached to the floor or the walls will be incinerated. You know, get rid of all that bad mojo*." Tobi snickered at the realtor's stricken expression after hearing that her precious antiques would go up in flames. Flames and salt*, she mentally added. You never knew what kind of nasty enchantments and spirits lingered on decades old couches and original Tiffany chandeliers.
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4 hours later, the specially commissioned movers cleaned the house out top to bottom, attic to basement, finding all sort of random curiosities. A whole set of absolutely enchanting pickled animal body parts, a few current books, a red ball, some recently worn clothing, a few bodies under the newly constructed gazebo, and a latex gimp suit. She raised her eyebrows at that last one.
Marcy, who'd elected to stick around and watch the value of her precious house go down with each item removed, looked pale and slightly green at the thought of 4 bodies right under her nose.
Tobi shrugged. After seeing what the ghosts and monsters everywhere around the country could rustle up, a few emaciated skeletons didn't seem too bad.
With the Murder House freed from any lingering earthly bad memories, the Ackermans officially moved in.
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The sun was just dipping below the horizon by the time the movers had returned, incinerating the old salt n' burn style, and filling the house with brand new, cheap Ikea furniture.
Tobi looked up from where she was rearranging swords on a weaponry rack to see her sister beckoning towards her in the living room.
"Yeah?" Maryam nodded.
"It's time. You know what to do." She closed her eyes momentarily to digest exactly what her sister was asking over her. When she opened her eyes again, her sister wore a concerned look in her eyes, her hand on her shoulder.
"Just part of the plan. Nothing much to it. You've done this dozens of times, right?" She finally nodded, a sick feeling stealing over her stomach.
"Right." Taking a deep breath, Tobi began to chant.
The words, old and thick on her tounge, flowed out of her like water. It ensnared the power hanging above the Hellmouth, bending it to her will.
She sensed every single ghost in the house, from the beautiful young maid turned wizened crone, the happy family of four, the poor, innocent, crying soul they'd taken that odd red ball from. The mutated horror who'd been hidden away in the basement, thankfully trapped in there by the protective lines Aaron had just put down in that area.
And she made them freeze. She paused their very existence. They hovered around them, the new residents.
We must protect them. A stray thought stole into her mind. So that was their strategy. They planned to scare them out of town before the Hellmouth took their lives too.
Tobi opened her eyes with a sudden breath, the dark, depthless brown of her irises replaced with a stark white.
"You have an hour." She murmured out of the corner of her mouth, concentrating her entire mind on keeping the resident Caspers frozen in time. Her sister and her brother leaped into action, quickly pouring rock salt out encircling their bedrooms, their bathrooms, a direct path to the front door that connected all those places, and from there, out of the property. Anywhere where you were at your most vulnerable, unable to defend yourself, and most importantly, an escape route.
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The reason for all this hassle just to lay down a few spices?
Tobi could feel the murderous intent beaming off the ground itself, off the beautiful, blonde haired boy hovering a few feet away from her, vibrating through the frame of the house. Like any other disgruntled poltergeist committed to killing off as many of the living as possible, she felt they would sooner sentence them to eternal death in this infernal house, then let them banish them permanently.
No doubt, given the chance, that blond haired boy would slit her throat before she could even put protective lines around the very spot she was standing.
Luckily for the Ackermans, she was born with the ability to control spirits. She could freeze them in Time, make them think that not a single moment had passed even though an hour had gone by, banish them temporarily, make them do the Macarena if she really wanted.
And like any ability, it had its' limits. An hour limit, to be exact.
"Time's up."
Brown slowly began to cloud her irises as she lost her control on the ghosts of the house. With a tiny exhale out, she let go of the magic, and the pulse of the mansion resumed as fast and as dark as it had been.
"We got it all done just in time, sis." Aaron pounced on her from the doorway, dragging her down to the ground in a tickle fight. With a sweeping motion, she locked her arm around his neck and pinned him to the ground.
"I win!"
"You two are so infantile, I swear." Her sister muttered from where she was leaning against the doorframe, watching with a smile as she pretended to be overwhelmed by her younger brother's attacks, eventually admitting defeat with an over-dramatic death wheeze.
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"Alright, kiddo. We got a long day tomorrow ahead of us. Better hit the sack, your brother's probably out cold by now." Tobi sighed, not even putting up a fight, before closing the Classification of Demons (2nd Oxford Edition) and grabbing her rifle and revolver. She headed up the stairs, humming along with the soft Latin holy chants her sister liked to put on at night.
Tossing the old leather-bound book and pistol on the bed, she slung the rifle back around her shoulder and headed back out the hallway to her brand new bathroom.
Four steps down the hall later, she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on edge. Quick as lighting, she whirled around, clicking off the safety of her gun and resting her finger on the trigger in one smooth motion, the barrel level with the head of the figure who'd decided to make his presence known
A boy, about her age, had been standing behind her, hands stashed in his pockets, blond hair mussed about in that I-just-had-sex-or-maybe-I'm-a-serial-killer way. He grinned all teeth at Tobi, brown eyes flickering in momentary surprise at the gun pointed at his frontal lobe.
"Now you listen here, bastard. Take one more step towards me and I'm gonna pump you so full of rock salt, your blood type gonna be NaCl."
Going to go ahead and just leave it on a cliffie y'all. Please review, tell me if I'm any good at writing, tell me I'm bad, tell me I should continue this lil ol thing, I don't mind. I feed off of your attention and follows and favorites so feel free to do any of those things. I'll just go ahead and stick a list of definitions of terms you may not know or that I didn't explain right here:
*'67 Chevy Impala. This car is the car of the main characters in Supernatural. It is beautiful. I want one. It got a spot in this story.
*Night Vale/the dog park: There is a radio show about a fictional desert town in California that has a dog park that you are not allowed to enter, or look at, or think too long about, because hooded figures. They are also visited daily by angels, agents from a vague yet menacing government agency, and the Sheriff's Secret Police. I highly recommend you go listen to it if you like American Horror Story. Just google it.
*salt/iron: literally the title of this fic. In Supernatural canon, ghosts can be kept away with salt, iron, various magics (Hoodoo, in particular), herbs, and charms. They will all be mentioned at some point. More specifically, ghosts and demons cannot cross lines of salt
*pentagrams are a symbol of protection. Particularly, the tattoos Maryam, Tobi, and Aaron will all display at some point.
*Flames and salt/salt and burn. The good ol' classic way of getting rid of demons, ghosts, whatever. The SPN equivalent of Season-All seasoning.
*Four Thieves Vinegar: In SPN canon, it is specified the American magic of Hoodoo is a way to banish/control ghosts. I did a little research, and Four Thieves Vinegar is another magical Season-All that was said to keep out witches, evil, spirits, and the Black Plague. Naturally, it would pop up.
*Destroying old furniture: In the book series Anna Dressed In Blood, the main character, a supernatural hunter named Cas, does this thing where he burns everything in the house that isn't attached to it to destroy any item for which a spirit might haunt the house.
*The Hellmouth: my theory is that the reason the ghosts are trapped in the Murder House is because it was built on a Hellmouth, as explained in this chapter. There seem to be a lot of those in L.A. (reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
*Slayer: also a reference to aforementioned tv show, Buffy
-hvrcules out