StrangeVsWeird
Hi Me, I'm Me.
**Reading through the submissions really inspired me to write a brief scene for this challenge. Know it's late and not counted toward the challenge, but it seemed too fun to pass up. I had to post lol**
"There must be a rational explanation for all of this," he murmured coolly, a sharp gray gaze fixed on the little ghoul who stared up at him with wide black eyes. The muscles in his body were taut, his fingers drumming his impatience on his hip bone as he watched the ghoul's brain flicker behind her eyes, undoubtedly trying to come up with that rational explanation.
Her bloody mouth was hanging open with bits of fleshy strings stuck to her lips and teeth, her tiny clawed hands covered with reddish brown goop that also painted the front of the white sundress she wore. Munching away on a child's bones without a care in the world, he's sure. Caught red-handed, quite literally.
"There's, uh...," she stammers, losing her will to speak for a moment when his face hardens and his fingers still. She gulps, finally dropping the dismembered arm she was gnawing on and with a deep, steadying breath, she stands. Clasping her hands in front of her and trying her very best to look as innocent as possible, she nods. "There is a perfectly rational explanation for all of this," she states, injecting as much of a sweetened tone as she could into her words, her eyes drifting to take in the mess she had made. His gaze follows and he takes a moment to weigh the magnitude of what has occurred.
Pieces, everywhere. The majority of what was left of the corpse was lying in a pool of blood just beyond the front door, the child's costume, tufts of hair, and remaining innards strewn in patches across the wooden floor, draping over various pieces of furniture in the foyer, and even clinging to the very walls. From what he could tell, the child had been dressed as a unicorn, the plastic Jack-o-lantern pail upturned and its contents scattered and abandoned near the entrance. His gaze settles on a couple pieces of candy corn the pool of blood had reached and watched the blood seep around them as it continued to creep across the floor, the orange and white of them drastically cartoonish amidst the carnage.
His gaze returns to the ghoul, finding she had been staring at him, a fear shimmering about her like a shroud she managed to quickly hide with a hurried flash of a smile. "I was, uh... Well, the explanation... Um, you see..." She could no longer keep her body still, squirming beneath a gaze so cold, it burned. "I was hungry?" She finally tried, a nervous, hopeful smile springing up onto her little face and when his expression did not even so much as hint to a change, she drops her head and kicks the toe of her dress shoe against the floor slimed with entrails. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, glancing up at him.
"Sorry," he repeats flatly and she flinches at how dead the word sounded on the air, quickly dropping her head once more, her face screwing up in anticipation of his wrath.
And his wrath was sure to come.
Silently, he pulls his hand from his hip and raises it, turning it to bring thumb and middle finger together for the audible snap that would shatter her very existence. Just like that. A snap of his fingers and she'd be nothing but ash.
"Sire." The house rumbles calmly, staying his hand and he lifts his eyes to the ceiling. There's a span of silence as even the house seemed to gather its thoughts, or rather, the poltergeist that possessed it, but soon enough, the same calm rumbled words through the walls. "'Tis obvious the situation is... Undesirable, but killing the poor thing will not undo what has already been done."
"It certainly will prevent future situations," he responds smoothly.
"As that is a reasonable argument, sire, she may prove more useful alive than you're currently giving her credit for. Besides, 'twas unintentional, I am sure. She's still learning to control her… appetite."
Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the ghoul nod her head vigorously in agreement.
"It was an accident! The kid knocked, I answered, the kid said 'trick or treat', and I yelled TRICK!--and then--"
His glare cuts to her and she clamps her mouth shut, dropping her head once more into a cower he didn't quite enjoy seeing on her. "And pray tell, Mortimer, where you might have been while she was tearing through an innocent child?" He asks softly, the weight of his words seeming to sag even the house down.
The house vibrates, clearing its throat before answering. "Well, sire, I was…" It hesitates and he lifted a brow, his gaze rising back up to the ceiling.
"My patience wears thin."
"I was occupied with my show, sire. Those Kardashians are crafty and I could not seem to look away as their devious plots unfolded."
A tired sigh escapes him and, closing his eyes, he pinches the bridge of his nose. "I am surrounded by imbeciles," he mutters.
"Yes, sire, but there is never a dull moment."
With a calming breath, he drops his hand. "Indeed." His attention returns to the ghoul, who he finds peeking up at him through her messy dark hair. Bending at his waist, he gently raises her face up with a knuckle under her chin. "You will clean up this mess, down to the very last drop of blood," he instructs, his voice softer now that his anger has cooled. She blinks as tears of relief well in her eyes, her bottom lip trembling and nods.
Straightening from her, he turns toward his study. Steady footfalls carry him, but as he passes the scattered candy, the striped orange and white catches his attention once more.
Squatting, he carefully picks up a single piece, the tips of his fingers skimming the blood on the floor. Bringing the piece of candy corn up to eye level, he watches as a drop of blood rolls down the backside of it and merges with the blood on his finger. "Afterwards, we will report this Violation to the Order and you will receive your punishment with dignity, do I make myself clear?"
He doesn't need to look to know the ghoul nodded her understanding. Standing, he brings the piece of candy to his mouth and lays it on his tongue.
Such sweet, innocent blood. Such a treat that he savors for a moment, just a moment, before he continues on towards his study.
"There must be a rational explanation for all of this," he murmured coolly, a sharp gray gaze fixed on the little ghoul who stared up at him with wide black eyes. The muscles in his body were taut, his fingers drumming his impatience on his hip bone as he watched the ghoul's brain flicker behind her eyes, undoubtedly trying to come up with that rational explanation.
Her bloody mouth was hanging open with bits of fleshy strings stuck to her lips and teeth, her tiny clawed hands covered with reddish brown goop that also painted the front of the white sundress she wore. Munching away on a child's bones without a care in the world, he's sure. Caught red-handed, quite literally.
"There's, uh...," she stammers, losing her will to speak for a moment when his face hardens and his fingers still. She gulps, finally dropping the dismembered arm she was gnawing on and with a deep, steadying breath, she stands. Clasping her hands in front of her and trying her very best to look as innocent as possible, she nods. "There is a perfectly rational explanation for all of this," she states, injecting as much of a sweetened tone as she could into her words, her eyes drifting to take in the mess she had made. His gaze follows and he takes a moment to weigh the magnitude of what has occurred.
Pieces, everywhere. The majority of what was left of the corpse was lying in a pool of blood just beyond the front door, the child's costume, tufts of hair, and remaining innards strewn in patches across the wooden floor, draping over various pieces of furniture in the foyer, and even clinging to the very walls. From what he could tell, the child had been dressed as a unicorn, the plastic Jack-o-lantern pail upturned and its contents scattered and abandoned near the entrance. His gaze settles on a couple pieces of candy corn the pool of blood had reached and watched the blood seep around them as it continued to creep across the floor, the orange and white of them drastically cartoonish amidst the carnage.
His gaze returns to the ghoul, finding she had been staring at him, a fear shimmering about her like a shroud she managed to quickly hide with a hurried flash of a smile. "I was, uh... Well, the explanation... Um, you see..." She could no longer keep her body still, squirming beneath a gaze so cold, it burned. "I was hungry?" She finally tried, a nervous, hopeful smile springing up onto her little face and when his expression did not even so much as hint to a change, she drops her head and kicks the toe of her dress shoe against the floor slimed with entrails. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, glancing up at him.
"Sorry," he repeats flatly and she flinches at how dead the word sounded on the air, quickly dropping her head once more, her face screwing up in anticipation of his wrath.
And his wrath was sure to come.
Silently, he pulls his hand from his hip and raises it, turning it to bring thumb and middle finger together for the audible snap that would shatter her very existence. Just like that. A snap of his fingers and she'd be nothing but ash.
"Sire." The house rumbles calmly, staying his hand and he lifts his eyes to the ceiling. There's a span of silence as even the house seemed to gather its thoughts, or rather, the poltergeist that possessed it, but soon enough, the same calm rumbled words through the walls. "'Tis obvious the situation is... Undesirable, but killing the poor thing will not undo what has already been done."
"It certainly will prevent future situations," he responds smoothly.
"As that is a reasonable argument, sire, she may prove more useful alive than you're currently giving her credit for. Besides, 'twas unintentional, I am sure. She's still learning to control her… appetite."
Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the ghoul nod her head vigorously in agreement.
"It was an accident! The kid knocked, I answered, the kid said 'trick or treat', and I yelled TRICK!--and then--"
His glare cuts to her and she clamps her mouth shut, dropping her head once more into a cower he didn't quite enjoy seeing on her. "And pray tell, Mortimer, where you might have been while she was tearing through an innocent child?" He asks softly, the weight of his words seeming to sag even the house down.
The house vibrates, clearing its throat before answering. "Well, sire, I was…" It hesitates and he lifted a brow, his gaze rising back up to the ceiling.
"My patience wears thin."
"I was occupied with my show, sire. Those Kardashians are crafty and I could not seem to look away as their devious plots unfolded."
A tired sigh escapes him and, closing his eyes, he pinches the bridge of his nose. "I am surrounded by imbeciles," he mutters.
"Yes, sire, but there is never a dull moment."
With a calming breath, he drops his hand. "Indeed." His attention returns to the ghoul, who he finds peeking up at him through her messy dark hair. Bending at his waist, he gently raises her face up with a knuckle under her chin. "You will clean up this mess, down to the very last drop of blood," he instructs, his voice softer now that his anger has cooled. She blinks as tears of relief well in her eyes, her bottom lip trembling and nods.
Straightening from her, he turns toward his study. Steady footfalls carry him, but as he passes the scattered candy, the striped orange and white catches his attention once more.
Squatting, he carefully picks up a single piece, the tips of his fingers skimming the blood on the floor. Bringing the piece of candy corn up to eye level, he watches as a drop of blood rolls down the backside of it and merges with the blood on his finger. "Afterwards, we will report this Violation to the Order and you will receive your punishment with dignity, do I make myself clear?"
He doesn't need to look to know the ghoul nodded her understanding. Standing, he brings the piece of candy to his mouth and lays it on his tongue.
Such sweet, innocent blood. Such a treat that he savors for a moment, just a moment, before he continues on towards his study.