*looks at the date* Holy Headless Horseman, is it October 30th already?! Uhh, uhh...*calms sudden flustered panicking*...OK, first off, Happy Halloween Eve! *throws up some spooky confetti to celebrate* Now, to anyone that may have been interested in this, a lot of stuff's been piling up for me (family stuff and personal issues of my own), so *deeply bows as a sign of apology for my extreme lateness* And, to anyone that may have been waiting to see what's next, wait no longer, my boos! It looks like haunt fever is starting to catch on for some residents of Union City. So, what's to come from all of that? Read on to find out, and, I hope you all enjoy, my dolls. =)
Just like Cora had thought, her telling her roommates-mostly Paige-about Joker's World not returning for the Halloween season this didn't exactly go the best.
"This just feels like such bollocks," Paige moaned that night in their apartment. "I get family coming first and all, but I was so looking forward to seeing what Mr. B was going to introduce this year too. Man, this sucks."
"Well, I think maybe it's for the best here," AJ said from the kitchen as she stirred a pot full of sauced spaghetti. "After all, after last year's 'trip to the asylum', I think you could do without being around any more crazy clowns. Especially after you got a bit too in touch with your own inner clown during the big Joker Jamboree last year."
A few memories coming back to her of the aforementioned party at the haunt, Paige couldn't help what she could feel was a slight blush starting to cross her face as she heard snickering from Cora. Trying to defend herself, the raven-haired woman said "So, I had fun dancing with Alexa during the Jamboree. What? You expect me to leave a cutie like her hanging?"
"It's not so much that, Paige. It's just how you were dancing with her that had us-well, mostly me-worried. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear you were trying to get the girl's number," the brunette said as she turned the heat off on the stove burner, feeling pleased with the doneness of the pasta and the taste of the sauce.
"Who, me? Oh, AJ, love, I would never do something like that," Paige said, a look of mock hurt crossing her face. "I was just giving a pretty girl a dance as my way of saying 'You were an awesome spooky Harley Quinn'. Nothing wrong with that, is there?"
"No, Paige, nothing wrong with that at all," Cora chimed in from the table where she was working on her homework. "Plus, you were at least cool enough to get her a drink after you two were done."
"But of course, Cora. After all, we Brits are nothing if not polite," the raven-haired woman grinned, something that got a few snickers from her roommates. A sigh escaping her as she laid back on the couch she was sitting on, Paige moaned a bit again. "This is all just such a bummer. Now what are we gonna do for Halloween this year? And I was so looking forward to maybe trying to join the haunt this year myself."
"Well, Paige, if it's any consolation, my friend Darby told me that there's gonna be a new haunt coming through this year," Cora said as she turned the page in her Algebra textbook to begin work on the next problem. "It obviously won't be Joker's World, but he says it'll be something new."
"Yeah, yeah, I know from what you told us already, Cor. 'You'll get a chance to fight back at zombies'. I know to some that sounds cool and all, but it just sounds wicked boring to me."
"Well, Paige, it's like the old saying goes. Don't knock it until you try it. And who knows? Maybe you'll have fun getting in touch with your inner Claire Redfield," AJ said as she gave the pot one last stir. "Alright, you two, dinner's ready."
"Yes, mum," Paige said as she pushed herself off of the couch. "Oh, and AJ? I have an offer for you."
"Oh? And just what kind of offer would that be, my dear crumpet?" the Latina asked as she fixed herself a bowl of spaghetti.
"Well, …it's about the new haunt Cora's friend told her about," the Brit began.
"What about it exactly?"
"Well …OK, I know you sounded strongly against going to one this year the other day we were out grocery shopping, but…maybe you'd be up for going to this new haunt with me and Cor? It could end up being a good bit of scary fun," the last of what Paige said coming out a bit sing-songy.
She still wasn't sure. After all, while she still had plenty of time to get ready for whenever the new haunt would open in town, AJ just didn't know. The oldest of the trio was almost set to argue Paige's request when Cora piping up cut her off.
"Paige is right, you know?" the youngest in the apartment chimed in as she got close to finishing her homework. "I mean, I know going to a haunt isn't fun to everyone, but who knows? Maybe you'll like this one."
"But what if I don't? I wouldn't want to drag you guys down and wreck your fun times just because I wasn't all that into it."
"Well, AJ, it's like I told Paige earlier. Don't knock it until you try it out. After all, given how many hours you've logged playing Resident Evil and other games like it, don't you think it'd be fun to maybe take part in something like those games?" Cora asked as she finished her last Algebra problem, something she celebrated with a fist pump in a show of victory.
"Hmm," the older brunette said as she thought over what her roommates just told her while she twirled her fork around in her pasta as the younger two fixed their own plates of spaghetti, looked at the flier on their refrigerator, and began to weigh out possible pros and cons to going to this new and mysterious haunt.
…
Skating through town as he surveyed his handiwork, Darby couldn't help the grin that started to tug at the corners of his mouth. The vague news he had gotten about the haunt that would take the place of Mr. Borden's that year was already something that had him feeling excited to possibly join the group working this one. But when he heard just who was going to be in charge of it had him feeling even more excited, so he knew he just had to do his best to help spread the word-which he did through a combination of social media posts and good old-fashioned fliers on light poles, store windows of people that would be okay with him doing so, and even on bulletin boards. 'Now, let's just hope my advertising's been helping with bringing in anyone that'll want to get an undead makeover,' the blonde thought as he reached and stopped in front of the building where what was once the home of Joker's World would soon be the home of a new haunt.
Pushing open the door after he grabbed his skateboard, Darby was greeted by what sounded like another successful pair of interviews for haunt actors with one of the new haunt's owners. "So, I'm guessing you got another pair for the haunt, 'cuz?"
"Yep," the co-owner, a woman with two-toned blonde and black hair, nodded as an excited grin started to cross her face before a snicker escaped her. "Although, I think it's gonna be interesting seeing these two in the hunt zone."
"Oh? And just what makes you say that?"
"No reason, really. Just something I heard this charming pair talk about after their interview," the woman said, her grin still on her face.
"I just hope I don't scare Mike too badly if he happens to come across me in the hunt zone," the woman in the pair said, a grin starting to slide across her face. "After all, it would make me a bad girlfriend if I were to scare my boyfriend silly. …Even though, I will say he has a good scare coming his way."
"Me? Have a good scare? Aww, Maryse, that's so cute that you think you're gonna scare me," the man in the pair, Mike, said with a teasing grin.
A light scoff of a laugh escaping her, Maryse said "We still have plenty of time from now to the big opening. Just enough time for me to get ready to give you and the other visitors a scare, mon amour (my love)" before she gave her boyfriend a quick kiss on the cheek.
Watching as the trio that came to the main area talked a bit longer before Mike and Maryse left, Darby made his way over to where the two-toned woman still stood. "So, 'cuz, looks like you got a pretty good survivor and zombie pair today. Sounds like things are coming along pretty nicely."
"They are! Thanks so much for letting me and Cody know about this place, Darb. I'm just …OK, I know we've been doing good with hiring actors and other staff and planning out the zones and the food and drink menu, but it's just …I'm just nervous about all of this," the woman said. "This is our first time running a haunt in this city, so I just want things to go smoothly and for people that choose to swing in to have fun."
"And things will, Kait. After all, it's spooky season, and how could you not want to have a good scare and some tasty treats if getting chased by a zombie isn't your thing," Darby reassured the older woman. For as long as the blonde skateboarder knew Kaitlyn-or Kait, for short-he had always known she had a love for horror-based stuff with zombies being one of her favorite scary things. So to hear his cousin sound so stressed out over something as big as this had him wanting to do what he could to help motivate her. Resting a hand on the older woman's shoulder, the blonde said "Relax, Kait. You and Cody's new haunt is gonna be great and do awesomely with the folks that drop in. After all, given the zombie elements you have going into it, it's got something for everyone. Just keep a level head and everything'll go smoothly."
Hearing the pep talk from her cousin, all Kaitlyn could do in that moment was smile before giving the blonde a hug as her way of saying Thanks. She knew Darby was right; she just had to have faith in herself and her boyfriend and their future staff and their haunt would be a big success. 'This is all gonna go well, Bonin, just keep calm. We've had big turnouts in the past, so I'm sure we'll do the same here. Just gotta nail our rehearsals and make sure everything'll be on the up-and-up, and RhoNin's Zombie Town'll be something folks here in Union City'll definitely remember from this Halloween!'
Well, it's certainly looking like haunt fever is starting to spread around a bit, from AJ and Paige having mixed feelings about it, Cora having slain the dread beast known as homework (...probably not all that important, but, hey *shrugs* I just felt it was worth acknowledging), Darby getting a chance to meet two of the haunt's actors after his skate through town (I'll elaborate a bit down below) and also offering up some encouragement to a nervous soon-to-be haunt runner, looks like everyone's starting to get excited. So, with the haunt's big day coming, how will things go? We shall see...next time (which, hopefully, won't take me too long to have posted)! Until then, don't forget to R-and-R please. =)
...
*Muse story interruption*
Kaitlyn: Finally! A shiki Halloween or spooky season fic where I'm not a vampire's snack pack! *does a bit of Running Man to celebrate*
AJ: Oh come on, getting bitten couldn't have hurt that bad, could it? *grins mischievously*
Alex: Yeah, Kait. Besides, Halloween is my birthday. Can't a gal want to have fun on her birthday? *flashes her best puppy dog pout*
Kaitlyn: *blinks before grabbing some nearby pillows and proceeds to throw them at the laughing pair*
Me: ...Uhh, yeah, sorry about that. Sometimes, my muses tend to have minds of their own. Sorry for their intrusions, but *shrugs* that's the Chickbusters for ya. Always getting into trouble. *clears my throat* Anyways, back to my end notes!
*End Muse story interruption*
...
Now, in regards to my wrestler character choices: First off, Mike and Maryse (pretty obvious who they are...reasons for including them (Mike = actor who's shown himself to be pretty tough in-ring and in movie roles he's had, and Maryse = she's actually done a bit of acting herself, with one role she had being one that surprised me when I first saw the movie in question, said role being that she was part of a military team (she played a medicesque character who was pretty smart and badass) that ended up having to fight off zombies on a supposedly deserted island.)). Second pair, Kaitlyn and Cody (Rhodes) (my reasons for including these two stem from a couple of things (first, this'll sorta be another piece where I'll be writing...and second, I just thought it'd be fun writing them as a couple that run a haunt and also fun writing Darby and Kaitlyn having a family bond)). So, I hope you all like the new characters introduced here.
(Stay safe, cool (or warm, depending on what the weather's like where you live), and healthy out there, lovelies. *sends love and positive vibes out to you all*)
