Reddrick Treasures & Antiques admittedly wasn't Tori's first choice when picking out stores to visit with Jade. She would have rather preferred a location like, say, the pottery shop she spotted a few blocks ago, or maybe that perfumery across the street.

(She figured she could learn about the kinds of fragrances Jade likes. Well, other than the obvious scent of death and decay, if that debacle with Mona Patterson taught her anything. Did she enjoy subtle flavors like lavender or something stronger like vanilla or jasmine? She knows for sure that coffee is a safe bet…)

(Right, back on topic.)

Of course, Tori shut down those ideas before she'd even suggested them due to how un-Jade-like they sounded. She could visualize just how strange she looked, the way she'd open her mouth and let out a small, strangled noise before clamping it down suddenly. It happened more frequently than it probably should have. And each time, she expected the goth to chime in with some witty remark that just…never came.

Jade was unusually quiet. Sure, there were moments where she'd purposely sit in silence, transfixed on some activity like tearing through a garbage bin with her scissors or writing her latest screenplay or trimming her own hair, but this kind of quiet felt wrong. She wasn't brooding or relishing in her frenemy's suffering. No, this quiet was much more contemplative and profound. It was almost as if Jade were locked in an armed conflict with herself, and the silence stalemated whatever battle was happening internally. \

She didn't want to jump to conclusions, yet her thoughts trailed to the argument (?) between Beck and Jade that morning. Presumably, they'd resolved any issues they had, but… well, Jade hadn't yelled at the actor like that since the week before their breakup back in August. It made her wonder what problems they were sorting through, given those fleeting glances and meaningful exchanges. Were they planning on getting back…?

Tori's heart winced at the thought. She needed to change the topic. She needed at least a vague sense of normalcy right now.

The brunette stopped moving, and Lance and Ankimo immediately took the opportunity to sniff the cracks in the sidewalk. After a few moments, she heard Jade's combat boots scutter to a stop as well. She spun around in annoyance, then gritted out a curt "What?"

"Okay, we've been walking around for a solid ten minutes and nothing's caught our eye," Tori stated.

"And what am I supposed to do about it?" Jade rebuked with a shrug. "You're the Oregon expert, not me. Surely there are a few places you'd want to revisit."

The singer pouted. "I'm not really that familiar with the area. Most of my time was spent at Aunt Sonya's or in the woods by the cabin. I've only been to a couple of stores, and I doubt they'll interest you all that much."

"Oh yeah? Try me." the raven-head declared, brow arched defiantly.

…So, they found themselves at the antique souvenir shop, a location nestled snugly between a hardware store and a sports gear outlet on the outskirts of Halrock Quarry's Main Street. At first glance, the exterior was pretty unassuming. The dark green trimming around the windows and doors helped to distinguish it from the other retailers, who'd preferred a more contemporary color scheme. Its brick walls were also left unpainted, revealing the gradual damage it had sustained. In fact, neither Tori nor Jade would be surprised if the store had remained unaltered over the past few decades, save for some touch-ups on the paint.

The bells on the doorknob let out a pitiful jingle as Jade initially struggled against the weight of the heavy door. It closed behind the teens with a resounding thud and caused them to flinch. The lights flickered on automatically, yet it did little to brighten up the room against all of the dark furnishings and wallpaper.

The first thing that stuck out was the sheer quantity of items that cluttered the interior. Knick-knacks of unknown origin were displayed on shelves and china cabinets, while the less fragile objects were placed on makeshift tables in no particular arrangement. The only trait that seemed to differentiate the store's decorations from its merchandise was the old piece of masking tape stuck onto each product with a price hastily scribbled on.

Thankfully, despite the room's compactness, there was just enough space for the dogs to weave through with ease.

An archway led Tori and Jade into another, larger section of the store where more tables with items lined the wall. There was an unmanned cash register sitting on a wooden counter and a handwritten sign that read 'You break it, you buy it' dangling from the top. Interestingly, the counter bordered a staircase that was chained to keep customers from heading up to the second level. Probably a living area, Jade figured.

"Ricky? That you?" a gruff voice called from the floor above them.

"No, Mr. Wetherspoon," Tori responded with some reluctance. "It's Tori. I'm here with a friend. We were hoping to spend some time looking around. Is that okay?"

Jade wanted to snidely comment about how this place was faarr from their first pick, how Reddrick was the only shop that Tori knew would for sure allow Lance and Ankimo in, but she swallowed the urge.

She nearly cackled, though, when the store owner's reply of "Who?" echoed in the stairwell, much to the singer's chagrin.

Tori sighed as if she'd expected that kind of answer. "Tori? You know, Sonya's niece?"

"Oh! Course, course! I'll be down in a jiff!" Mr. Wetherspoon assured his guests. They heard rummaging and something akin to clanging before the wooden steps began to creak under his weight. Eventually, a middle-aged man materialized donning a friendly smile.

"Apologies for the wait. We don't expect much business around this hour, so I was taking a sec to straighten things up. Course, your family is welcome to drop in anytime. Ricky could do with seeing you lot again."

Mr. Wetherspoon's gaze shot down in surprise when a creature brushed against his legs and sniffed at his boots. He ruffled the fur atop Lance's head. "And it looks like you brought along the other canines, too! They haven't been giving you much trouble, have they?"

"Not any more than usual," Tori reported with a dramatic eye roll. "Surprisingly it's been smooth sailing. They haven't been too restless yet."

"Aw, well, keep on looking out for them. And o' course, look out for yourself too. We don't wanna another repeat of last year," the man jested good-naturedly as if referencing some inside joke. Tori fiddled with her palms and chuckled along apprehensively.

Naturally, this piqued Jade's interest, who'd struggled to insert herself in the exchange. She crossed her arms, suddenly fascinated by the conversation and the brunette's peculiar reaction.

"What happened last year, Vega?" the goth inquired, her tone laced with mischief and amusement. Tori's mouth hung open as she tried to string together a complete thought.

"I, erm, it's hard to…it's really not that big of a… you don't need to…"

"My, what didn't happen the last time the Vega's dropped by?" Mr. Wetherspoon reminisced aloud. He caught the panic that flashed behind Tori's eyes and instantly backtracked, setting his sight on Jade. "But, that could be a story for another time. So, you're mini Sonya's friend, I hear."

"It's complicated," Jade replied with some reservation.

"Ah, we all got one of those relationships. Speak with my ex-wife and she'll give you a similar answer," the retailer barked out a laugh. "Anyhoot, the name's Alfred, but most folks call me Redd. I run this fine establishment with my son Ricky."

(Oh…Reddrick…How original.)

"If you give me a minute, I can probably get him to pop his head in for a lil' while. He'll appreciate some fresh faces," Mr. Wetherspoon asserted, taking off to the second floor before the girls could protest. They could hear the man hollering, "'Ey, Ricky! We got company!" faintly from above.

"You know, if we wanted to, we could make a break for it right now," Tori suggested with a dry smile. She appeared… conflicted, almost.

Jade was all-too-familiar with that feeling; once upon a time, it had served as her constant companion. She understood it as an indicator of her self-preservation, that sense of tugging and squeezing that accompanied having to consciously filter through her own words to avoid letting something slip.

Seeing it on Tori felt wrong. It infuriated the heck out of her if she was being honest. The goth had to endure two freaking years of the brunette pushing her beyond her limits, making her question if it was okay to be vulnerable and in touch with her emotions–the good and the bad–only for Tori to retreat into herself.

But that's fine. Because Jade was good at pushing back.

"What makes you think I wanna leave now? Things are just starting to get interesting," the raven-head affirmed smugly.

The singer heaved a gloomy sigh. "You're just trying to be contrarian."

"I'll let you think whatever you want, sweetheart," she rebutted while flashing a coy grin.

Two sets of footsteps began plodding down the stairs. Redd Wetherspoon returned, followed by a begrudging teenager–probably his son, Ricky–who regarded the newcomers with a wary look.

"Annndd there are strangers here," Ricky observed the pair with passive curiosity. His eyebrows furrowed together as he studied Tori intently, then darted back to Jade. "Or, uh, stranger. Singular."

"'Ey, that's hardly an introduction, Ricky!" Redd reprimanded the boy, lightly smacking his arm and eliciting an agitated grunt.

He blew a stream of air to push away his fluffy bangs. "Alright, fine. Hi. I'm Maverick. Welcome to Halrock Quarry."

Maverick… Oh. So this is the dude that Trina had droned on about being her male counterpart, who Tori supposedly had (or has?) the hots for. Ignoring the mess of emotions that admission had brought up, she surveyed the two with a critical eye.

"So you're Maverick, huh?" Jade allowed the poison to drip from her mouth casually. The brunette's head whipped to face the goth incredulously, while the shopkeeper's son stifled a surprised, yet amused scoff.

"I take it you've heard of me," Maverick replied with a note of perplexity. "Look, I dunno what your friend has told you, but I can assure you that it's probably only fifty percent true."

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," a skeptic Tori mumbled.

"So I suppose that Vega," Jade began as she gestured at her rival. "blurting out your name affectionately in the dead of night is only half the story?"

At that statement, the boy's expression seemed to rapidly alternate between confusion, denial, and indignation, while Tori emitted an intelligible cry. Heck, even the dogs' ears seemed to raise in suspicion. Jade couldn't tell which response was most amusing to her.

"Okay, now you're just making stuff up," the brunette objected, her cheeks puffing out as her face took on a rosy tint. "I find it hard to believe that the person who can sleep through a literal war somehow heard me sleeptalking."

The ravenhead shrugged. "I just block out anything that I don't want to hear. Surely you're familiar enough with that concept."

"Really? Since when have you ever taken an interest in who I do and don't know?"

"Uh, when it involves some mysterious person that you haven't cared to mention before, then yeah, I'm going to be mildly interested."

"Before you two continue your little tangent," Maverick announced pointedly after clearing his throat. His pupils bored into Jade's as if he were mentally recording his impressions of her. "I think I should clarify to you that I've seen Tori on, like, three separate occasions. And that's only because Dad drags me to Sonya's with him whenever they have one of their business meetings. Half the time I can't even tell her and her tone-deaf sister apart."

"See?" Tori motioned in Maverick's direction, eyes locked on Jade resignedly.

"Well maybe if you'd started with that-"

"You never let me-!"

"Alright cool, so this has been fun and all, but can I go back to my room now?" Maverick requested.

"Sorry bud, no can do," Redd responded with a patient yet teasing smirk. "You promised me you'd hang up those flyers around the town, remember?"

"Sir, yes sir," the younger of the Wetherspoons grumbled out with a mock salute.

"Aw, some air will do you good, Ricko!" he insisted. He placed a sturdy palm on his son's shoulder that was immediately shrugged off. "Or do you want me to pull the boss card instead?"

"I'd rather you not," Maverick conceded, trudging into a room behind the cashier's desk. Moments later, he emerged with a backpack, a tape roller, and a stack of papers and shambled towards the shop's exit catatonically.

The boy turned to face Tori and Jade with a blank expression. "It was seeing you."

"Don't you mean 'it was nice seeing you?'" Tori replied warily.

"I know what I said," he retorted. The door then clattered into place, causing the bells to let out a series of intermittent chimes.

"Well he was certainly a ray of sunshine," Jade snarked, which earned a warning look from her rival.

The store owner exhaled in disappointment, then regarded the girls remorsefully. "Sorry 'bout that you two. I was hoping he'd be in a good enough mood to give you a proper welcome to the Quarry. I can assure you, it was by no means personal. The kiddo's just… well, it's hard to get through to him nowadays."

"It's no problem, Mr. Wetherspoon," the brunette reassured him, lips compressed in a tight smile. "We understand."

"Nonsense. I told you before, Mr. Wetherspoon's my pa's name. Just Redd will do," the man admitted after letting out a good-natured scoff. He rubbed his hands together resolutely.

"So, you said you wanted to take a peek around. Wouldn't happen to have anything in mind, would you? We've got a lotta wares I can pull out if you're interested in anything specific."

The duo shook their heads until Tori received a nudge in the leg from Ankimo. His puppy-dog eyes shimmered with entitlement as he glanced between the singer and a vintage baseball on a shelf behind the cash register.

"Nuh-uh, buddy. That's not a chew toy," she scolded. "You have plenty of those at home you can slobber on. That one's off-limits."

"Oh, I shoulda guessed," Redd remarked light-heartedly, a faux stern expression directed to the dogs. "Your mom's spoiled you boys rotten. That's Sonya for ya, she just can't say no to anybody… Especially you two. "

Tori is forced to surrender her grip on the canines' leashes as Lance and Ankimo raced over to the shopkeeper and butted their muzzles into his palms.

"Well, the damage's been done," he continued with a laugh. "Let me get them something extra special from the back. I'm sure I have a few squeaky toys around here somewhere. Lottie used to bring a few from the vet clinic whenever they got new ones in."

Before opening the door to the adjoining supply closet, Redd paused as if he were recalling something. "Actually, I might have a little something for you too, kid. Care to help me track it down while you're here?"

"Uh, sure," the brunette agreed, voice wavering between reluctance and interest. The latter apparently won out, since Tori stole a sheepish glance at her rival before joining her aunt's friend in the storage room. The goth merely huffed and made a show of turning away from the pair while examining the store's trinkets.

The place wasn't too out of the ordinary, Jade concluded as she sorted through its wares. At the very least, the items probably weren't stolen from a dead person's crypt, though that fact filled her with equal parts relief and disappointment. She would have loved some souvenirs from beyond the grave.

Of course, the odds and ends they sold could hardly be considered novelties, either. She'd wager that the Wetherspoons picked out these knick-knacks from miscellaneous garage sales and flea markets, what with the light coatings of dust and debris that lined their edges. There were the regular odds and ends, ranging from old video game consoles to collections of refrigerator magnets to the rusted heads of pickaxes. Then, there were some of the more absurd finds, like a few… nose-shaped ornaments? Weird.

Aside from some of the second-hand junk, though, Jade noticed an entire shelving unit filled with handmade trinkets, which she wandered over to absentmindedly. Populating the shelves were wooden plaques carved with nature scenes as well as a few bangle stands holding carefully crafted wooden totems. She grazed over the top of a small keepsake box, feeling where the features of a moonlit landscape were chiseled into the surface.

Jade unconsciously flipped open the lid, eyes narrowing in wonder as she spotted an old locket inside the container. Curious, she weaved the chain through her fingers and clasped onto the pendant. Rust seemed to collect along its outer edges, which produced an odd texture in the palm of her hand and dulled its metallic sheen. Her thumb stroked over the–surprisingly sharp–clasp, and for a brief moment, she could have sworn that the object seemed to vibrate in anticipation.

The goth nearly let it slip out of her grip as she heard Tori and Redd return from the supply closet. The former was trying to balance an obscenely high stack of tea boxes in one hand while grasping onto the dogs' leashes in the other.

"Well, try those out and see if they help any," the shopkeeper suggested with a reassuring grin. "Your aunt used to preach to me all the time about the soothing properties of herbal teas. Course, I wouldn't let her have the satisfaction of knowing that I took her advice, so guess you'll have to take a gander at it for me, haha!"

"I'm beginning to think that this was just an excuse for you to dump off the teas that my aunt left you with," Tori muttered while inspecting the faded labels of the containers with wariness.

"Wha- these are two years past their expiration date!"

"Is that so?" Redd remarked, elbow resting on the countertop in feigned smugness. "Sorry kid, I'm afraid our establishment runs a strict 'No Return Policy.'"

The singer expelled a breath and cast a frazzled look at Lance and Ankimo, who wielded a frisbee and a rubber squeaky toy, respectively. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised then. At least you two seem satisfied."

"Oh! Speaking of…" She rebalanced the boxes of herbal teas in her arms so she could address her companion. "Did you find anything, Jade?"

"Yeah," the ravenhead replied. She stole a brief glimpse at the metal locket in her clutches and placed it onto the register expectantly. "How much for this?"


Redd Wetherspoon imparted a quick "Take care!" as the teenage girls set off from his shop with halfhearted waves. A trace of a smile lingered when the door shut unceremoniously.

It was always great to encounter some new folks who were interested in his merchandise. Well, at this point, any sort of traction would be considered an accomplishment, even if they were surveyors who simply scuffed their feet against the floorboards and left without a word.

Business had become a novelty in the past six months. The only profit they'd made in two weeks' time was from a plumber who purchased a keychain after fixing their leaky faucets in the upstairs bathroom. He'd promised to spread the word to friends and family, but even Redd knew that the gesture wouldn't amount to anything substantial.

After all, Halrock Quarry was hardly a hotspot for outsiders. It was just another remote mining settlement that had been cast into obscurity after its mineral deposits were sucked dry and a series of workers' protests discouraged further operations. So, Reddrick relied extensively on residents within the community in order to maintain their humble establishment.

Mr. Wetherspoon snatched a towel and spray bottle from underneath the counter, spritzing the top with some generic cleaning product and scrubbing its already pristine surface. A bittersweet sigh escaped his mouth.

Of course, small communities are privy to gossip. Despite any and all attempts to keep the situation private, his separation from Lovetta–in a very traditionalist town, mind you–made him a subject of contempt and mockery. Before, he was a man whose fantastical tales of forest spirits and beasts who changed shape were viewed as endearing by the locals. He entertained kids with unexplained phenomena, and he recounted myths and legends with such assurance that even the adults would gaze at his products with a mystique, childlike wonder. Perhaps they initially accepted his eccentricity because his wife helped to balance it out with her cool rationality.

Now, though? Now he was nothing more than a laughing stock. An oddball store owner who had let his delusions of the paranormal take over his life until he ultimately drove away the people who mattered most.

Sometimes he wishes he could tell others that there was a glimmer of truth in his claims. With what he had learned the year prior, there was enough proof to demolish everything that everyone had once known about Halrock Quarry's history, then reconstruct it with magic as its foundation. Perhaps his marriage would be mended, and his son would know that their conversations weren't the one-sided ramblings of a madman.

But doing so would involve destroying the trust and boundaries of certain individuals that he'd promised to help. It'd mean that people who deserved to live ordinary, private lives would get outed and ushered into the limelight for things that are very well out of their control. And, they'd ultimately be hurt by this tucked-away corner of society because of its tendency to lash out at things that they don't want to understand.

Redd was tired of hurting others.

The shopkeeper's head snapped up as someone set foot in the building for the third time today (That has gotta be some kind of record, he thought with a bemused chuckle).

"You back already, Ricko? See bud, I told ya the outside world isn't so bad-"

"Is Maverick still out?" a distinctly feminine voice called out from the entrance. A middle-aged woman emerged through the archway, and on instinct, Redd's spine lengthened and the muscles in his jaw tensed up.

"Lottie! Didn't expect you for another week at least," Mr. Wetherspoon greeted his ex-wife warmly, if not somewhat apprehensively. He shook off his nerves by stuffing his palms into the pockets of his denim jeans. "What brings you by these parts?"

"Hi," she regarded him with a detached nod and motioned towards the stairs leading up to the living quarters. "I'm just here to pack up Maverick's belongings."

Redd sensed the air in his chest settle at the bottom of his lungs like an anchor. He cleared his throat, hoping that his next words wouldn't come out as strained as they felt. "Uh, um, right. And that would be because…?"

"My God Alfred, have you forgotten already?" Lovetta exhaled, pinching the space between her brows in mild annoyance. "Maverick texted me earlier this morning asking if he could come to stay with me for the week. He told me that you were alright with it."

Redd winced at the revelation. That was definitely news to him. His face must have betrayed the blend of shock, heartache, and resignation that was stirring inside him, since her expression suddenly softened in sympathy.

"...He didn't check with you, did he?"

The store owner swallowed twice and mustered the widest grin he could manage. "Oh, I'm sure that he was planning on it. You know how I can be, Lottie. I've got a mouth that goes a mile a minute. He was probably waiting for me to shut up before he could pop the question."

"That doesn't excuse it. He and I are going to have a long discussion on the ride home," she bit out while seizing the phone in her purse. She then paused and looked up at her former husband determinedly. "In fact, I can head back right now and come next Sunday. Just say the word."

"Come on, don't be so hard on him." Mr. Wetherspoon insisted. "Sure, it might've stung a bit, but what's important is getting him what he needs. And right now, he needs his mother."

"And you're sure about this," Lovetta stated warily.

"'Course I'm sure. Let the kid be. He doesn't need another parent driving him mad."

The woman huffed and inserted the phone back into one of the pockets of her handbag. "Alright, if that's the course of action you wish to take, then I'll be waiting for Maverick in the car. He can gather his own stuff; at least that'll give him the opportunity to apologize."

As his ex-lover departed from the streetside shop they'd once managed together, Redd found himself imagining yet another tiny fragment of his soul being pulled from his body to obediently follow after her.

Complicated was the word that Tori's companion used to describe the girls' relationship. And by the looks of it, that catch-all term was pretty appropriate to express whatever conglomerate of feelings that they held for one another. Like a cruel game of tug-of-war, they would rather try to overwhelm each other with brute strength and endurance in the hopes that one of them will relent. Yet, in doing so, they forget that they are bound together by the same rope and are kept within each other's orbit.

That is, until someone lets go, and the sudden absence of that opposing force leaves them with nothing except scraped knees and red abrasion marks on their palms.

Redd stared wistfully at the metaphorical rope in his hands, wondering if he would still be able to discover someone tugging at the other end.