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Dec. 14th, 2013 05:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
not_crazyUp close? The lighthouse does have that...'I am the heart of Haven' kind of vibe. Also a 'I am potentially haunted' vibe, but Jessica ignores that because she's a little freaked out already.
Okay, a lot freaked out, but everyone else is out there, Duke included, doing what they need to do. She? Needs to do the same. So she takes a deep breath as they approach, trailing just behind Vince and Dave, who haven't stopped bickering since they realized Vince's tattoo is apparently somehow a compass. Because no, really, things weren't weird enough yet.
(She knew she had to stop tempting this town with thoughts like that. One day.)
There's a long walkway toward the totally not haunted (maybe) lighthouse, and Vince peers down at his tattoo-and-also-arm compass to make sure it's still pointing at it. Sure enough, the mark is pointing forward.
"This is the heart of Haven," Vince says, matter-of-factly, and it's not like Jennifer can deny what's literally right in front of them right now. Without another word, she steels herself and starts walking forward, her steps purposeful. From over her right shoulder, she can hear Vince add, "There's been some kind of lighthouse here for as long as anyone can remember."
She supposes they all know why now.
The brothers are uncharacteristically silent after. She can feel tension, and assumes that it probably is there because of what they're approaching. Tension or not, the moment they reach it, Vince opens the door. There's a moment she half expects something to come out, but nothing happens. No, instead she walks over to look inside and it looks a whole lot like a really old lighthouse with a trap door in it.
A trap door that she quickly realizes is being overlooked.
"No stairs, no ladder. How do we get up?" Vince asks, very much not looking down and instead staring up.
"Looks like we're out of luck, then," Dave says, sounding awfully relieved. This is a fact she files away to worry about later, because obviously they are somehow missing the trap door on the floor.
"...I think we should go down," Jennifer states, pointing at it for good measure. Vince and Dave completely ignore her.
"We're not out of luck, Dave. You can hoist me up to that ledge there," Vince says, and that would be a very sensible option if not for the fact there was a trap door.
"You know how hinky my back is," Dave responds, and that's about the point Jennifer realizes she's going to need to raise her voice.
"Guys! Seriously. Why don't we go down the trap door?" she asks, and apparently she's loud enough this time because their attention turns from each other, to her, and then to the ground she's pointing at.
"...What door?" Vince asks, sounding confused.
It's the most obvious trap door she thinks she's ever seen.
"You don't see the...trap door," she says, carefully. There was a time where seeing a trap door no one else sees would freak her out. Now, she's just a little puzzled. Dave peers in more himself, like he's looking for a tiny trap door instead of the huge one right in front of them.
"No?" Dave replies, sounding as confused as his brother.
Invisible trap door only she can see? Well, at least this place made it easy to figure out the next part of what they need to do. Apparently her Trouble really, specifically likes letting her see doors no one else can see. She supposes things could be worse. (like baby's cries can kill people worse).
"Definitely have to go down that," she says, stepping between them and inside. She kneels down and takes hold of it, pulling it up. By the time she looks back, the brothers are staring at it in astonishment. She guesses it's not invisible anymore.
"I think going down there is a really bad idea," Dave says, sounding as nervous as he did when she found the door. Vince ignores the warning.
"Come on, Dave!" he says stepping in now that their next destination is found. She sees him hesitate and while she feels bad for him, Vince doesn't have much sympathy. "Come on!"
It's a warning she ends up wishing she heeded. Everything's as normal as finding an invisible trap door can be at first. Vince takes the short ladder down into whatever room is underneath the lighthouse. Nothing weird comes after him once he's at the bottom, so after seeing Dave hestiate, she decides to go next. The ladder is old but sturdy, and she focuses on getting down safely. It's when her feet touch the ground that things suddenly change.
She notices it immediately, honestly. One minute she's stepping off an old ladder, the next she looks up at it and it looks like a regular, shiny, new ladder that she might see at any hardware store. When she turns to look at Vince, he isn't there, and okay, she didn't really get any kind of look at the room they were going into, but she's pretty sure it's not supposed to look like some kind of random person's basement.
She's staring at her surroundings in confusion when things get even worse. The sound of a door opening startles her, as does the sudden light that floods the room. She finds herself staring at someone who is staring at her with the same kind of shock she has on her face, and then there's a lot of screaming from both ends and warnings to not move and well.
That's how she ends up getting arrested. Not by Haven PD, mind you, because that would be too easy. No, the man who comes to take her away for trespassing and attempted burglary (because apparently when you're found in a stranger's basement, they immediately assume you are there to steal things) is from a place named Darrow which is neither Haven, Boston, or anywhere she's ever been in her life. She's carted away even as she babbles an explanation that, in retrospect, probably put her 'favorite' label of 'mentally unstable' on the list of reasons why she needs to be taken away.
She probably should be happy she ends up being booked and thrown into a jail cell instead of some kind of hospital. Except a jail cell actually really isn't much better, and the only saving grace of all of this is no one else is in the cell with her. She sits on the cold seat, her arms wrapping around her body (because on top of being somewhere she didn't know, she was also in a place that had snow on the ground and was a lot colder than her clothes allowed for) as she tries to not freak out.
She's really, really freaking out. The voices that weren't actually all in her head had been bad enough, once upon a time. This? This was so much worse.
"Excuse me?" she calls out eventually, standing against the cell's bars in a vain attempt to get someone's attention. "Don't I get a phone call? Hello?"
When no one answers, she slowly steps back and sits again, still hugging her arms to body because she doesn't even have her book anymore to hold like a weird, badly written magic shield - they took it away when they were checking her for weapons.
Jennifer takes another deep breath, trying to steady herself. Figure out what's going on. Do something that isn't sitting here. As much as she wracks her brain, nothing comes up. She doesn't know what to do.
It scares her in a way she hasn't been scared in a long time. A monster coming after her that only is defeated by her weird, magic paperback? Yeah, that's scary, sure. But potentially losing her mind, which she kind of feels like is what is happening here at this point? That's a whole other beast.
Okay, a lot freaked out, but everyone else is out there, Duke included, doing what they need to do. She? Needs to do the same. So she takes a deep breath as they approach, trailing just behind Vince and Dave, who haven't stopped bickering since they realized Vince's tattoo is apparently somehow a compass. Because no, really, things weren't weird enough yet.
(She knew she had to stop tempting this town with thoughts like that. One day.)
There's a long walkway toward the totally not haunted (maybe) lighthouse, and Vince peers down at his tattoo-and-also-arm compass to make sure it's still pointing at it. Sure enough, the mark is pointing forward.
"This is the heart of Haven," Vince says, matter-of-factly, and it's not like Jennifer can deny what's literally right in front of them right now. Without another word, she steels herself and starts walking forward, her steps purposeful. From over her right shoulder, she can hear Vince add, "There's been some kind of lighthouse here for as long as anyone can remember."
She supposes they all know why now.
The brothers are uncharacteristically silent after. She can feel tension, and assumes that it probably is there because of what they're approaching. Tension or not, the moment they reach it, Vince opens the door. There's a moment she half expects something to come out, but nothing happens. No, instead she walks over to look inside and it looks a whole lot like a really old lighthouse with a trap door in it.
A trap door that she quickly realizes is being overlooked.
"No stairs, no ladder. How do we get up?" Vince asks, very much not looking down and instead staring up.
"Looks like we're out of luck, then," Dave says, sounding awfully relieved. This is a fact she files away to worry about later, because obviously they are somehow missing the trap door on the floor.
"...I think we should go down," Jennifer states, pointing at it for good measure. Vince and Dave completely ignore her.
"We're not out of luck, Dave. You can hoist me up to that ledge there," Vince says, and that would be a very sensible option if not for the fact there was a trap door.
"You know how hinky my back is," Dave responds, and that's about the point Jennifer realizes she's going to need to raise her voice.
"Guys! Seriously. Why don't we go down the trap door?" she asks, and apparently she's loud enough this time because their attention turns from each other, to her, and then to the ground she's pointing at.
"...What door?" Vince asks, sounding confused.
It's the most obvious trap door she thinks she's ever seen.
"You don't see the...trap door," she says, carefully. There was a time where seeing a trap door no one else sees would freak her out. Now, she's just a little puzzled. Dave peers in more himself, like he's looking for a tiny trap door instead of the huge one right in front of them.
"No?" Dave replies, sounding as confused as his brother.
Invisible trap door only she can see? Well, at least this place made it easy to figure out the next part of what they need to do. Apparently her Trouble really, specifically likes letting her see doors no one else can see. She supposes things could be worse. (like baby's cries can kill people worse).
"Definitely have to go down that," she says, stepping between them and inside. She kneels down and takes hold of it, pulling it up. By the time she looks back, the brothers are staring at it in astonishment. She guesses it's not invisible anymore.
"I think going down there is a really bad idea," Dave says, sounding as nervous as he did when she found the door. Vince ignores the warning.
"Come on, Dave!" he says stepping in now that their next destination is found. She sees him hesitate and while she feels bad for him, Vince doesn't have much sympathy. "Come on!"
It's a warning she ends up wishing she heeded. Everything's as normal as finding an invisible trap door can be at first. Vince takes the short ladder down into whatever room is underneath the lighthouse. Nothing weird comes after him once he's at the bottom, so after seeing Dave hestiate, she decides to go next. The ladder is old but sturdy, and she focuses on getting down safely. It's when her feet touch the ground that things suddenly change.
She notices it immediately, honestly. One minute she's stepping off an old ladder, the next she looks up at it and it looks like a regular, shiny, new ladder that she might see at any hardware store. When she turns to look at Vince, he isn't there, and okay, she didn't really get any kind of look at the room they were going into, but she's pretty sure it's not supposed to look like some kind of random person's basement.
She's staring at her surroundings in confusion when things get even worse. The sound of a door opening startles her, as does the sudden light that floods the room. She finds herself staring at someone who is staring at her with the same kind of shock she has on her face, and then there's a lot of screaming from both ends and warnings to not move and well.
That's how she ends up getting arrested. Not by Haven PD, mind you, because that would be too easy. No, the man who comes to take her away for trespassing and attempted burglary (because apparently when you're found in a stranger's basement, they immediately assume you are there to steal things) is from a place named Darrow which is neither Haven, Boston, or anywhere she's ever been in her life. She's carted away even as she babbles an explanation that, in retrospect, probably put her 'favorite' label of 'mentally unstable' on the list of reasons why she needs to be taken away.
She probably should be happy she ends up being booked and thrown into a jail cell instead of some kind of hospital. Except a jail cell actually really isn't much better, and the only saving grace of all of this is no one else is in the cell with her. She sits on the cold seat, her arms wrapping around her body (because on top of being somewhere she didn't know, she was also in a place that had snow on the ground and was a lot colder than her clothes allowed for) as she tries to not freak out.
She's really, really freaking out. The voices that weren't actually all in her head had been bad enough, once upon a time. This? This was so much worse.
"Excuse me?" she calls out eventually, standing against the cell's bars in a vain attempt to get someone's attention. "Don't I get a phone call? Hello?"
When no one answers, she slowly steps back and sits again, still hugging her arms to body because she doesn't even have her book anymore to hold like a weird, badly written magic shield - they took it away when they were checking her for weapons.
Jennifer takes another deep breath, trying to steady herself. Figure out what's going on. Do something that isn't sitting here. As much as she wracks her brain, nothing comes up. She doesn't know what to do.
It scares her in a way she hasn't been scared in a long time. A monster coming after her that only is defeated by her weird, magic paperback? Yeah, that's scary, sure. But potentially losing her mind, which she kind of feels like is what is happening here at this point? That's a whole other beast.
no subject
Date: 2013-12-18 02:43 am (UTC)"I'm gonna take you to the train station," he says, opening the door so she can get into the passenger seat. "We'll get your package and hopefully I can explain it all a little better."
Even with the envelope, he knows it won't all make sense. He knows it's gonna take time until she's settled, but he wants to do what he can to help. He knows that this is never easy, but he doesn't think anyone else has been arrested upon their arrival in Darrow. That has to make everything even more difficult.
no subject
Date: 2013-12-18 11:00 pm (UTC)"I mean it, thank you," she says, offering him a weak smile as she slips into the police car. She still isn't sure if she's supposed to say anything - these cars have cameras, don't they? She doesn't know. She's just assuming. But then he gets in and starts talking himself, so she relaxes.
Somewhat.
"How does a package even exist for me here?" she asks, confused. Because last time she checked, she didn't go over to anywhere to ask for one to be made for her. "You said it had something like an ID in it - I never took at pictures for that. I'd think I'd remember that."
no subject
Date: 2013-12-19 01:39 am (UTC)He sort of hates this part, but he can't avoid it. There's no reason to let her get her hopes up when it comes to going home.
"No one can leave either," he says. "It's like there's somethin' that keeps us all here. We can't leave the city and we can't get home. I'm sorry to be the one who has to tell you this, but it's how things work here."
no subject
Date: 2013-12-19 03:14 pm (UTC)If the Troubles can make a screaming baby become a weapon and all the other crazy things she's seen since she got caught up in what's happening, why not this? But he really didn't seem like he ever heard of Haven when she brought it up before, so -
None of this is good.
"How long have you been here?" she asks instead, her free hand digging her nails into her pants' leg. Now that she isn't in jail and seeing the completely unfamiliar city towering around them again, it's hard not to feel her chest tighten.
She can't stay here. There's so many reasons why she can't stay here, and not a single one she can say outloud. Except maybe something about how she really can't be here when she knows her boyfriend would freak out and tear the town apart trying to find her, maybe, but just thinking about Duke - well.
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Date: 2013-12-20 12:58 am (UTC)It's weird to think back to those first several months when it had just been him and Delta and a couple of guns. He's lucky nothing went too wrong in that time.
"After about three months the other people showed up," he says, signalling to turn into the lot of the station. "They don't remember it that way. They think they've always been here. Some of 'em... well, I keep callin' them them and that's how they feel about us. We're outsiders, so it's good to be careful when you start talkin' about bein' from someplace else." He turns off the car and looks over at Jennifer. "I know this is all shit. It's scary as hell and doesn't make a lot of sense, but this is how it is."
no subject
Date: 2013-12-23 01:22 pm (UTC)It's very, very tempting to do otherwise.
"What happens when you try to leave? Is there - I don't know, is there some kind of barrier stopping you? You'd think that'd be weird to anyone, even people that came from here. I mean, not being able to leave town would be a big red flag for me."
Is a big, red flag to her, actually.
no subject
Date: 2013-12-24 12:32 pm (UTC)He knows how that sounds, too, but that's how it's happened for him. He doesn't try to leave anymore, mostly because he knows there isn't anything for him out there. Darrow's all he's got. Odgen Marsh is gone and the Russell Clank who lived there is dead.
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Date: 2013-12-27 10:40 pm (UTC)So. Something as insane as the Troubles, but not the Troubles, since this is clearly not Haven. Distantly, she wonders if maybe she should try to find that edge that sends them back and see if her book reacts to it at all. Still grasping at straws, she knows, but a desperate feeling is already welling up in her.
She can't be here when she needs to be home.
"You haven't - you haven't heard of someone named Duke Crocker, have you?" she asks, not sure if she wants to hear he's here or not. She knows he's as needed in Haven as she is, and if he's here, things are looking worse and worse for over there.
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Date: 2013-12-28 02:31 am (UTC)"Your envelope will be at the information booth," he tells her, pointing to where it is. He'll come with her, of course, but he's never tried to pick up someone's envelope for them and he's not sure if such a thing would be allowed. Darrow's got weird rules sometimes and he can't remember them all.