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Realistic or Modern The Stitch N' Witch Club

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By the way everyone else in the room was fidgeting and staring, Raul could assume the majority could either sense or see their visitor. Such raw sensitivity to the ethereal was promising, but also dangerous. These psychics awakening to their newfound abilities were obviously powerful, but they were going to need guidance. Guidance, and patience. They were not Raul’s first batch of newly awakened souls, and he had much experience in the frustration and impatience that came along with learning to hone such skills. This group of members they had built up over the last few years was more than up to the task, however. Raul had no doubts about their ability to help these people.

Raul let the spirit be, and returned his attention to the group as they all began to introduce themselves. Everything was going relatively well, if not a tad awkward and disorganized, until Alyssa decided to call out Maika, to which she characteristically clapped back. Now was not the time for their petty arguing. They were engaging each other in front of new members Raul was hoping to put at ease, not make more uncomfortable by their bickering. He had little control over what any of them did—he was not looking for control—but he had hoped they would reign it in a bit for today, at least until after their new members had gotten to know them and had managed to find themselves acclimating. This was going to bring them leaps backwards on any sort of progress they had managed to make in the first few minutes of their meeting.

Raul blinked, and his eyes followed Maika’s to Alyssa, the only sign that he was feeling anything towards the situation brewing before him. He hoped that the two would police themselves and that neither Laurie nor he would have to intervene. He respected both of them enough to allow them the opportunity to rise above this once. By the way the argument was trending however, he was not sure he was going to be able to sit out for long.
 
Casper gave Aleah a soft smile, nodding at her question. They perked up at the starts of her question, but then there was speaking, and there wasn't really much they could say after that, was there?

Casper's face pinched tighter as the ghost nodded, acknowledging a truth they might have been expecting, but still wasn't quite prepared for.

They looked down slowly, shoulders slumped as Raul spoke, and they tried to pay attention to what he was saying, and then what Alyssa was saying, but this was all much too sad for any of that, wasn't it?

A voice spoke, and Casper realized belatedly it was likely the ghost. Casper looked up, eyes still sad, and slowly nodded, hesitantly lifting a finger to his lips. It was quiet time now, wasn't it?

Aleah introduced herself, and Casper paid attention, smiling warmly. "Oh, that's the ghost, probably." They should probably learn the ghost's name, huh?

And then Emory was introducing themself, and Casper looked to them in interest. They had a good point, didn't they? Casper could carry conversation between Declan and everyone else. That would be easy enough, right? And it would be super helpful! Casper could be useful! His heart soared.

Of course, then Maika had to speak up. Casper's smile fell, pricks of dread starting in the base of their spine. They didn't want another fight, especially not when there were newcomers. Gloria was talking, too, and so was Laurie, but that didn't matter, because now Alyssa was speaking up, and she was just making things worse.

They glanced to Raul almost pleadingly, but he wasn't doing anything. Why wasn't he doing anything?

Casper's heart began to race, and they did the only thing the could think of.

"I'm Casper," they started, quiet, but quickly building, "I'm a psychic, and I do charms sometimes, too- Okay, I do a lot of stuff, but charms are a lot of fun..." They were losing steam. "Um..." Their eyes lifted back to the ghost, then lit up, and they glanced around the room.

"As you all might have guessed, we also have a less visible guest! ...Well, okay if you can see him you didn't really guess, but still!" He turned back to the ghost, gaze softening. "What's your name?"

Fluxbauble Fluxbauble and everyone else​
 
Declan was relieved to know that even with what little practice he had he was coming in clearly enough for at least someone to hear him. This was the first time outside of his own little group of friends that someone else was able to not only see him but actually hear him. The wave of relief washed over him and it clearly showed when he put his hand to his chest and motioned like he breathed a sigh of relief. Based on what was going on around him at the time it seems there was a lot of new people to this shindig and they were all just introducing each other. This was like when he first moved to Louthorne and met his mates for the first time. It brought a smile to the ghost boy's face. He quietly looked around the room at all the people who were introducing themselves.

There was the guy from the gas station Emory. When he mentioned he wasn't much help to the vitality-impaired Declan couldn't help but laugh. "I think I'm gonna steal that one from ya bud. He he he." Vitality-impaired. I gotta remember that one for the guys. Declan thought as he caught Emory's smile. He definitely gave off a big brother vibe and it was heart warming. Well as heart warming for a ghost as it can be. Declan then check to see if his heart was actually beating with a disgruntled look. "Nope no heart beat. Still dead. Damn shame that." He said as he chuckled. Declan was happy to have someone of an older brother figure in his life, un-life, again. He had a brother, but he moved out before his parents divorced and moved here to Louthorne.

Next was Aleah's turn. Declan faced her once more and to be honest the words 'What the fuck?' was not the first thing he expected out of her mouth. in fact it was kind of jarring. "What the fuck back at ya love?" Was the only response Declan could return. Honestly he didn't expect Aleah to swear, like at all. it totally broke his small image of her in his mind. She always seemed like a studious girl who minded her P's and Q's. To be fair Declan thought about the situation and he couldn't do anything but scratch the back of his ethereal head when he realized what she was looking at. He was a ghost and well, not many folks can say they see one and have everyone believe them so quickly or willingly. "Sorry about that Aleah. Just ya kinda caught me off guard is all. And sorry again I sort of... followed you and your brother here." If ghosts could blush Declan certainly was as he tried to make himself smaller by crossing his legs and averting his gaze from her.

Next was a girl named Maika. She seemed pretty conventionally speaking. Maybe slightly older than Declan at best. She seemed kind of pissed if nothing else at the moment. Even dead Declan could probably cut this tension between her and Alyssa with a knife. Well assuming Declan was able to hold the knife long enough to perform such a feat. After that brief introduction with a side of sexy sass, was Gloria, Laurie's sister. She seemed... Eccentric. If nothing else she was was self confident and not afraid to express herself. Seemed almost like a polar opposite to her sister who seemed like the responsible one of the two.

Everything seemed to be going swell. That was until the tension snapped so to speak as Alyssa torn into Maika. Ah there we are. For every beauty there is a beast lurking in the shadows. Declan thought as he watched the girls spat. To say it was uncomfortable for everyone was a tad of an understatement. But to Declan it was no different than watching two high school girls replay a scene from Mean Girls in the cafeteria. While that was going on the boy, Casper, introduced himself. Ah so this was Casper. Well this would mean that he and I will have to become best mates here right quick. Declan floated his way over to Casper's right side and gave the boy a smile.

"Nice to meet'cha Casper. Name's Declan, Declan Chase. Former classmate of the lovely Miss Bunker, resident ghost of the used bookstore Moonlighter's, and probably the single most confused person here at the moment." Declan extended his hand out to shake Casper's before realizing what he was doing. He quickly retracted his hand and began to scratch his head again. "Right-O then can I ask ya something mate? Is everyone in this little club as attractive as a Starbucks barista or am I a loon for thinking that since I'm... Well ya know dead? I mean even Emory is pretty. No homo by the by, but I mean that boy could do Baywatch. Seriously look at him! That just ain't fair."

mikaluvkitties mikaluvkitties and everyone else ( This is easier lol)
 
Maika turned her attention back to Alyssa and gave her a death glare, the older witch always had to poke and prod at her. Maika knew she didn’t get along with Alyssa and she had decided trying to befriend or even be nice to the elder witch was pointless and so they were at the same spot they were always at, at most every meeting. Alyssa telling her she did something to her and Maika saying she was innocent. She didn’t always have time to mess with the other witch, she barely had the time to mess with anyone at this point. She ready to fight the older witch. Of course she waited for Casper and the newcomer to speak before she opened her mouth again. She wasn’t going to let Alyssa have the last word, that was not how she worked, “Listen, bitch. I didn’t hex you and maybe if you got those loose screws in your head fixed, you’d know. You’re just pissed I actually got in on the investigation. I don’t need to hex you. You aren’t worth that effort. If I hexed, you it wouldn’t be from some beginner’s spell guide. You on the other hand might still need to use that guide.”

She knew Laurie was going to be livid with her, but what was new? Laurie was always miffed when her and Alyssa got into it, the club knew how it went for them every time and at this point it should have been expected. Maika usually started it but she also knew Alyssa had started throwing shade first. Maika always felt like the other witch had nothing better to do than try and blame her for all the problems she had. Maika wanted to be a better witch, though making Alyssa’s life a little more difficult had become fun. She also wasn’t wrong Maika had manipulated her way into the investigation, but she didn’t hex her. She manipulated based on her own merit and she didn’t need to push someone else out of the way. That wasn’t how she wanted to get in on things, she still liked doing things in a more proper manner, sometimes she just had to take some matters into her own hands.

Vi_Vi_ Vi_Vi_
 
Cody was not sure how he was still standing on his feet. He would've definitely fainted if this had happened before he came to this town. Then again, this might not have happened if he hadn't come to this town.

A girl near him sweared, startling Cody. Why was she swearing? Then it dawned on him. Of course, everyone could see this ghost here because why not? A bunch of extremely normal people who had gathered for an extremely normal meeting, that's what they were, except they could just do magic, see ghosts and... Control minds? What did psychics do anyway? He was still not sure of his powers, he thought Laurie was mistaken in calling him a psychic.

The girl, having drawn everyone's attention with her colorful language, introduced herself. Aleah Bunker, Emory's sister. Cody's eyes searched for the said Emory so that he could commit their face to his memory. They could be of help since their own sister was experiencing such weird things. He didn't have to search long since they introduced themselves next. Compared to their sister, they had good control over their language. Seemed quite helpful too, seeing as they had even offered to help a person who was already beyond help. Oh he shouldn't have thought that. That was rude. Cody shook his head, his thoughts were getting muddled. His mind wanted rest, it was all too much for him, a guy who had been living a pretty normal life before he entered this accursed town.

Just when he thought he couldn't be more surprised, these people proved him wrong. It seemed like there was going to be a cat fight. A girl, around his age, named Maika started speaking. Oh boy. She actually called Alyssa petty. Even Cody, who had barely spent an hour here, knew that Alyssa was not to be meddled with. Maika sure had guts.
When Laurie tried to break the tension, Gloria made her glorious introduction. Cody smiled. There was no other word to describe this girl except wild. He made a mental note to get her Snapchat.

Laurie warned the ladies against fighting. Judging by her words and the look on most of the faces, it looked like this was a daily affair in their lives. How did they ever get any work done in their meetings if this was the state every time?

Alyssa did not stay quiet. Of course she wouldn't. And wow, she could be brutal. Before Maika could reply, this quite guy started speaking. Brave of him to introduce himself while a cat fight was going on. He seemed nice enough, Cody would definitely befriend him. Gotta stay close to the experienced psychics. Casper started talking to the ghost and even the spirit, who introduced himself as Declan, got quite chatty.

What was even going on here? People were chatting, fighting, snapchatting and even sketching. This was chaos. The level of chaos increased when Maika replied to Alyssa's insult with something harsher. Oof.

A nagging feeling in his gut told him that something was going to go horribly wrong. This fight was going to take a different turn. He didn't know where this feeling came from but it was there and he needed to do something about it.

"Uh, hi! I'm Cody... Brown." He looked around him and caught Alyssa's scowl. He licked his lips in nervousness. "Just thought I'd slide that in there. You can continue to fight." He gave a meek smile and retreated to the back of the group.
And then it happened. Uh-oh.
 
This Cody guy had to speak, didn't he? Alyssa scowled at him, making his shut his mouth and retreat to the back. Now it was time to take care of the dear little Maika.
Alyssa knew that something like this was going to happen, thanks to the predictable nature of her rival so she had come prepared. She had already placed a hex on Maika and now it was time to burn some of the spells she had prepared. She reached into her purse and pulled out the papers on which the spells were written and lit them with her lighter. The flames licked the spells and turned them to ashes.
Then she closed her eyes and put all her intention into strengthening the effect of the spells and the hex. They were all done so Maika would lose her voice for some time.
All this did not take any time at all, she was pretty quick.
Alyssa opened her eyes and smiled evilly. "Enjoy."
 
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This argument was going nowhere good. The two women were at it per usual—not surprising, just disappointing. Just this once, he had hoped they would be able to set their differences aside, at least until they had completed the introductions. It was foolish of him to have ever thought such a feat possible, and he saw that now. Raul followed the argument from one to the next, until his eyes landed back on Maika with stern surprise. It was time to shut this down.

Raul pushed himself up from his chair and took a step forward into the gathered circle of new and old members. His hands found their way into his pockets, where they spent most of their time. Raul fixed first Maika with a look that he reserved for only the most critical of times. Now was such a time, when these new psychics and witches gathered in his sitting room were counting on their group to guide them through the beginning stages of their development. How was he supposed to convince them to trust the Stitch ‘N’ Witchers with their futures, when their first impression was this childish infighting? A reprimand was poised on his tongue, as he turned his eyes from Maika to Alyssa, but he was stopped from expressing his disappointment in the both of them when Alyssa broke out a lighter and a few papers, which she promptly lit.

“What did you do?” Raul’s eyes narrowed on Alyssa as he turned to face her, hands sliding out of his pockets.
 
There was a moment before chaos that Laurie could feel her whole body tense up. It was nearly instinct; a rigid panic burrowing inside her, hidden and infiltrating. She needed to fix it. If she didn’t, Alyssa or Maika could get themselves hurt. Declan was here and recently deceased. Cody was new. Aleah was young and emerging to their group. They had new people for her to keep tabs on and protect. What if she screwed up?

Laurie was on her feet quickly, snapping her fingers and pointing at Gloria. “Glo, get Maika,” she ordered. Gloria plunked her paintbrush into a cup of water and gave a swift nod. Laurie turned away and approached Alyssa, stepping in front of her carefully.

Papers crumbled into flames, the ash speckling the floor at their feet. Laurie gazed down and shifted her boot, glaring in exasperation. “This isn’t your house, Raul shouldn’t have to clean up after your tantrum. Get a vacuum when you’re done here,” she muttered. The crankiness to her voice felt shaky. She was on her last thread, directing a scowl across at Maika now. Gloria had clamped a hand on her shoulder, whispering a quick joke with a grin crawling up her lips. “You could kick her ass. Just- pow. Like-”

“Enough,” Laurie warned. She glanced between Maika and Alyssa next, lips tight. What good were they as a group if they couldn’t even keep their own peace? They had terrified new members coming in seeking stability, and there was a fight breaking out over simple introductions? Laurie threaded her hand through her hair, taking in a steadying breath.

“People died three days ago. Members of our town. People we knew. Some of them are here today, and a lot has changed for them. We have no time for your dramatics when bigger issues are at stake. You are lucky if all you have to worry about is a snub from another member.”

Laurie let out a held breath, spinning to face Maika. She put an arm up to block Alyssa back; not that she seemed intent on fighting with her fists, but Laurie wasn’t sure what to expect anymore. Gloria offered a helpful tip, eyes brightening. “I could totally tackle one of them if it gets ugly, I promise. Like, linebacker-”

“It won’t be needed. Are we done here? Do we need to go discuss this?” Laurie flung her hands out like she was keeping balance of something, eyebrows furrowed. Her ears were ringing; the pounding in her head only increased with everyone’s emotional clamor. Laurie’s brain felt like a ball of foil, crumpling and tightening more and more and leaving her dizzy. She directed a request to one of their gentler members. “Casper, can you go get me two Ibeprofin from the bathroom?”
 
For a few moments, all Aleah could do was just watch, flicking her eyes around the room and trying to link names to faces. It might have been easier to concentrate if she didn’t have to keep glancing back to that dark-haired girl from the bookstore- Maika. As far as Aleah could tell, Maika felt bad for the ghost floating its way over to Casper and wanted to keep it company, because there just wasn’t any other explanation for that kind of a death wish. Laurie tried to call things back into order, but from the death glares that Maika and Alyssa were fixing on one another, she may as well have been talking to a wall. Aleah shrank back a bit as Alyssa spoke again, getting more and more visibly angry. (She also made a mental note to get Gloria’s snapchat when this all died down. She seemed like a pretty chill person, at least.)

Casper- they’d started to answer her question, but their voice petered out as soon as the others started talking over them- started to speak again. They were introducing themself to the group at large, probably trying to stave off some kind of fight, but it didn’t seem to have had much of an effect. She gave them a tiny, sympathetic frown. People talked over her a lot, too. She gave them a tiny nudge, hitting their ribcage way sooner than she’d expected, and whispered, “Charms?” with an excited look in her eye. That sounded like it’d be an easy way to start out with these things, and a fun one too.

That ethereal, muffled voice hit her ears again, and she frowned as she looked over to its source. Why did it sound so damn familiar? She didn’t dwell on it, though- not when that ghost was talking to her. Not when the ghost knew her name. Not when it had apparently followed her here without her even noticing. She grimaced, looking at the part of the phantasmal blob where a face would probably be. “Oh, no, yeah. That’s cool, that’s fine. Don’t do it again.”

It wasn’t until the ghost introduced himself that Aleah placed a name to the voice. “Wait, Declan?” She dropped her voice to a whisper, leaning in towards him and Casper. “...You’re dead?” she asked, unable to hide her surprise. (To be fair, there had been a lot of people who’d gone missing in the event’s aftershocks, and although a lot of bodies had turned up, Declan’s wasn’t one of them. To be honest, she just… hadn’t noticed he was gone.) She shook her head, trying to wrap her head around this as he kept on rambling. Declan had died, and apparently, so had his sense of modesty. She gave a subtle glance around the room. He wasn’t exactly wrong- the club was packed with people who were all miles out of her league. Out loud, she just gave a quick laugh. “Emory? Seriously? Dude, raise your standards.” She noticed Emory glance at her with a look of confusion. Oh well.

She sure didn’t have much of a chance to consider it, not when Maika dropped the bitch-word right to Alyssa’s face. She stifled a gasp, ignoring the dumbass trying to introduce himself in the middle of a brewing catfight. Instead, she watched with wide eyes as Alyssa glared, pulled a few papers out of her purse, and lit them on fire. The ashes fluttered to the ground.

Aleah blinked. Was… Was that it?

It must have been something, because Raul was on his feet now. The look on his face was a dangerous sort of calm, and Aleah wondered what the hell Alyssa could have possibly written down there. As Gloria went to grab Maika and Laurie launched into a lecture that she probably didn’t need to listen to, Aleah leaned back in towards Casper. “Okay, what was- What was all of that?” she whispered, gesturing to the growing crowd in the middle of the room.

mikaluvkitties mikaluvkitties Fluxbauble Fluxbauble (plus mentions of most everyont else)
 
Maika was livid with Alyssa and the second the witch had burned the paper she knew only bad could happen. She was still livid, “Maybe, I wouldn’t be aggressive, if you would just stop accusing me of everything.” Maika was going to speak more and she could feel her throat closing off and words weren’t exiting her. She was done with Alyssa and seeing as she couldn’t talk which meant no spells, she could use her hands still. Those hadn’t lost their ability to hit people. She could see Laurie and Raul were there to protect but that wasn’t enough to dissuade Maika. She pushed past Laurie and had managed to get her hands to push Alyssa. She was ready to throw a punch towards the girl. No one else had ever made Maika feel the way Alyssa did. She was the only person who knew how to push her buttons the right way. Most everyone else she liked and enjoyed but not Alyssa.

She wanted to get in more than a shove she wanted to pummel Alyssa for messing with her, for accusing her of something she hadn’t done. She knew the girl deserved nothing less than a beatdown especially for hexing her. Maika had only spoken the truth and no one else got the same wrath from Alyssa, Maika had always seemed to get the worst of it and that bothered her and rubbed her the wrong way. But, Maika was supposed to be good and not start more drama? Stupid and pointless. Maika was going to take care of her problems her way no matter what the others thought or said. Alyssa would earn everything that happened to her always.

Vi_Vi_ Vi_Vi_
 
Casper missed Aleah’s question, but they nodded along to everything Declan said, doing his best not to crumple into nothingness as it became more and more evident that Declan had once been alive- And recently, too. It was always easier to be around the older ones, wasn’t it?

Or maybe it was that this one was so young…

They almost shook the young ghost’s hand, only remembering around the time he did that that would likely be as successful as… Well. They quickly recovered, offering a nod… And then quickly breaking down into quiet giggles. He was funny- the ghost was funny.

They didn’t have enough time to reply before Maika was speaking again, and their eyes widened, mouth drooping down as they turned back to the pair of women warily. One of the newcomers tried to say something, but Casper couldn’t really pay attention in the face of Alyssa casting a spell.

His lip began to wobble.

That was bad.

Alyssa was being bad and Casper couldn’t do anything about it.

Immediately, Raul was interrogating Alyssa, but their eyes were already starting to prick at Casper’s eyes in a way that only made them panic further. And then Laurie was talking, and she was right. Casper was lucky- They shouldn’t be upset, not over something this small.

And then they were being asked to do something. Really, it was the least they could do, right?

But they couldn’t move- It was as if they were frozen. They took in a shuddery gasp, throat beginning to close up under the pressure of everything they were feeling, and it was only a second longer before they were sobbing, shudders wracking their body as their vision blurred. They curled in, shoulders hunched.

They shouldn’t be doing this, and they knew it. And hell, they didn’t even want to be doing this, but they’d been trying to hold it together for so long- The incident had been scary, and that only made it worse.

At least they knew what had happened- Declan didn’t. Most of the town didn’t. Their sobs grew louder.
 
“I understand you two have your differences, but this is not the way to sort them out. Especially not in front of our new guests.” Raul’s eyes remained fixed on Alyssa, so that he did not see Maika push past Laurie. His disappointment was evident, but there was no anger upon his face or in his tone. What he wanted was for apologies to be exchanged so that they could get back to their meeting. Unfortunately, that did not appear to be happening any time soon.

At the sound of footsteps directly behind him, Raul turned on his heel just in time to see Maika moving around him. He shifted back a half-step, inserting himself between Maika and Alyssa in the hopes of blocking the woman’s advance. He pushed an arm out as well, hoping to also prevent Alyssa from engaging. They needed to end this now, and if that meant him picking Maika and Alyssa up and marching them outside so that they could hash things out in private, he was prepared to do it.

Raul’s free arm, he held up defensively should Maika choose to change her target and advance upon him. He watched her carefully, ready to grab her arm if she tried to move around him. He did not want to go hands-on, finding such physical use of force undesirable and counterproductive, but he could not stand around and allow these two women to brawl in his home, in front of his guests. For now, he had managed to maintain his calm and patient demeanor, but his frustration was starting to bubble. And now Casper was sobbing, frozen in his seat. Raul wanted to look over, to speak with Casper and ensure they understood that this would all be over soon and none of this was their fault in any way. But, Raul was too busy watching Maika. If Alyssa and Maika were the reason for Casper’s frustrations and anxiety, Raul would have no choice but to pull both women aside and have a serious conversation with them about their behavior. He needed these two to start respecting each other for the human beings they were.

“This is not how we resolve conflict,” Raul frowned, directing this reprimand at Maika.
 
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Alyssa realized immediately that what she had done was wrong. She had let the negative emotions take control of her mind and not considered that Maika was, after all, younger than her and Alyssa should be the mature one here. She knew shouldn't have reacted the way she did but it was too late, she had enforce that hex with all her intention and now Maika would not be able to speak for some time. Why had she done that? Just because the junior witch called her a bitch? After what Alyssa had done to her, the title of a bitch did not seem much wrong.

Laurie stepped in front of Alyssa and reprimanded her and Maika. She was right and Alyssa felt guilty. There were much important issues to deal with and yet here she was, starting a fight and hexing people. What was wrong with her? Why had she felt so negative in that moment when she started this fight? She had disappointed everyone, she should've acted more maturely. What hurt was that both Laurie and Raul were standing in front of her in a defensive stance, as if she would attack Maika with her fists.

Raul did not look angry but Alyssa could feel it beginning to bubble inside him. One thing that she did not want was Raul's anger. She hated when he was angry or disappointed with her.
"I...took her voice away." Alyssa mumbled in reply to Raul's question. She doubted it was audible.

Maika uttered a few words before her voice stopped working but those words were enough. Alyssa knew that she was always harsh on this girl and this type of behavior was not right, especially in front of the newcomers. She wondered what sort of impression she had left on them.

Raul was right, she should not have done this in front of all those guests. Were they a laughing stock now or had they terrified the guests? She did not like either or the results. Alyssa was standing with a hung head but she looked up just in time to see Maika pounce on her while Raul and Laurie formed a wall between them, protecting Alyssa and also preventing her from doing what Maika did.

She heard Casper sobbing and that was her breaking point. She made Casper cry and she absolutely did not want to do that.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything." She announced. "I'll clean up before I go." She told Laurie and Raul. "I'm sorry for all this." She told everyone and glanced at Maika, giving her an apologetic look, Alyssa spinned on her heels and marched out of there.

She reached the front door but did not head out. She was not going to leave the party, that would be Raul's insult as well as the club's, so she decided to sit on the front steps and sulk. Taking out her flask from her purse, she took several big gulps and sighed. Her eyes pricked with tears which slowly made their way down her cheeks.

Why had she done this? She missed her mother in such situations. She would've told Alyssa the exact reason for her outburst, she would've calmed her down but she was stuck in prison because of her disappointment of a daughter and couldn't help her now when she needed her. Alyssa was on her own.
 
Things were dissolving between the two at hand. Laurie rocked an elbow backwards to try to pry Maika back. She passed an exasperated glance at Raul as he stepped between them both. Her hand braced on Alyssa’s shoulder, to either keep herself upright in the scuffle or keep her back if needed. Laurie mouthed a curse at the ceiling.

She swallowed roughly. Pangs of pain lit up in her head, leaving splotches over her vision like fireworks. Laurie dug her nails into the fabric of Alyssa’s dress for a moment, anchored to her shoulder. Raul was right; this was not how they resolved conflict. Laurie spared a look over their other members, her heart recoiling in both shame and worry to see their faces.

Casper was bawling. Laurie broke into an empathetic frown, beginnings of tender phrases wanting to tumble out of her mouth. Their current predicament kept her from it. Flashes of bright pain radiated over her head with each of his choked sobs. Laurie dug her teeth into her cheek, recoiling and peering to Gloria instead with her request for medication.

“Two of them. Now,” Laurie seethed. Gloria bobbed her head quickly, skittering aside and leaping upstairs two at a time. Alyssa was spinning away, too, retreating in apology. Laurie stepped back and let her pass, knocking into Raul in both accident and brief support with another aching throb across her skull. She glanced testily at Maika, patience severed.

Keeping the two girls apart for a moment would bring some clarity, Laurie reasoned. She left Alyssa alone to take her solace on the front porch. Patting Raul’s shoulder with murmured gratitude, Laurie stepped aside and left him to Maika. He could handle one; she could circle in the rest and try to ease tension.

“We are all under a lot of stress,” Laurie murmured. She plucked a few tissues from a box and strolled towards Casper, offering them out to him gently. Laurie held eye contact with a spot on the rug. Gloria had most likely gotten lost or distracted, but if Laurie could ease the room, she could ease the headache. She picked a question to start.
“What is your biggest worry from all of these changes? Anyone. Call it out. I’m sure we have many that are the same. We won’t move forward if we aren’t candid with each other.”
 
Emory

Every time. Every single time. Emory fought the urge to flinch away with every new jab between Maika and Alyssa. They could certainly understand how they fell so easily into their usual arguments, especially given all the stress of the past week. Still, it was frustrating to see them acting like this in front of newcomers- people struggling with new abilities and revelations. Aleah had been on the brink of a panic attack about losing control of her hands since she got home from school (they were a little surprised she was keeping herself together in the face of this argument). Hell, there was a ghost here, and these two didn’t have the self-control to hold back long enough to let him adjust to the afterlife?

Aleah’s half of a conversation hit their ears, and Emory shot her a glance. She could hear the ghost, huh? And from what they could tell, she knew the ghost, even if Emory couldn’t place the name.There wasn’t time to dwell, though- not when Alyssa was pulling out a lighter and casting something on Maika. They stood quickly, glancing between the two women. Raul and Laurie were already intercepting those two, and they were struggling to figure out if either of them needed help when a hoarse, hitched gasp hit their ears.

Their eyes snapped right to Casper, curling in and shaking like a leaf. A pang of hurt rapped at the inside of their chest, and before they could even process their own motions, they were walking over to them. Even Laurie crossing between the two of them to offer tissues didn’t faze Emory. Casper must have been dealing with enough in the wake of the cataclysm this week, and this argument was just the last straw that sent things tumbling down. Emory curled their frame in as they drew closer, just so they’d come off as a little smaller, a little less intimidating. The last thing they wanted to do was scare Casper more. “Hey,” they murmured, laying a hand on Casper’s shoulder to ground them. “Let’s get out to the hall, okay? I’ll talk you through some breathing.”

As Emory guided Casper to their feet, they kept talking- just loud enough for people besides Casper to hear what they were saying, but still with a gentle, calming tone. “C’mon, we can get Laurie some aspirin too. Easy does it, I’ve got you.” They headed out from the living room with slow, deliberate steps.

Out in the hall, they paused, leaning Casper up against a wall. “Alright, focus in on how your breath feels. Breathe out longer than you breathe in, and just feel it coming in and out of your lungs. I’ve got your hand, okay?” Sure enough, Emory was taking hold of Casper’s hand in one of theirs as they pulled out a Sharpie from their pocket. “Hold still, stay with me. I drew this up a while back for this kind of thing.” They pulled the marker’s cap off with their teeth and turned Casper’s hand over to their palm. With shaky, left-handed strokes, Emory traced out a sigil, reciting its intention in their head as they drew to seal in its power. Let calm find me. It might not stop Casper from crying altogether, but if they’d done this right, it’d stop this from escalating into a full-blown panic attack.

“There we are.” After Emory capped the marker, they gave a tiny smile, giving Casper’s hand a squeeze. From the living room behind them, they heard a break in the cloud of voices, followed by two sets of footsteps out to the hall. Gloria (it had to be Gloria, no one else Emory knew would run around Raul’s house like that) went for the stairs, probably to help Laurie out with her splitting headache. Another set, one harder to place, trailed out towards the front door, which opened and closed. Emory glanced towards in that direction, but the door was already shut by the time the noise had registered in their brain.

With a soft sigh, they looked to Casper. “I think someone just left. Can I go and see who it is, or would you prefer I stay here with you?” The second option was always important to say out loud, Emory had learned, especially when Casper was feeling this bad.

mikaluvkitties mikaluvkitties
 
Cody watched the shit go down as if in slow motion. Alyssa pulled out some papers, set them on fire and let them float to the ground while ablaze, all the while smiling like an evil scientist. Only difference, an evil scientist would not do a spell.

Raul seemed angry, Laurie too. And Maika? Well let's just say Maika was quite keen on murdering the witch in front of her. Before Cody could understand much, he heard Casper sob and saw Maika try to attack Alyssa with her fists while Raul and Laurie moved in position to defend her.
Why was Maika acting like a mime? Cody was confused why she wouldn't speak. Oh! Was that because of Alyssa's spell? Damn! He had never seen real magick and spells in life but this strange club changed that in a matter of minutes.

Alyssa apologized and left. Cody caught a look on her face which made him want to go after her but his head had started to ache a little and like Laurie, he too needed some medicine to suppress the pain. Emory and Casper left, so he wasn't sure if he should leave too. Besides, Laurie was addressing the newcomers and he decided it was the right time to voice out his concerns.

"Um, I have some concerns." He came forward. "I want to know how we're supposed to deal with these new...powers in all this mess?“
 
Declan couldn't do anything in all the chaos. It all happened so fast it was actually hard to keep up with it all. Alyssa and maika were going at each other's throats before Alyssa up and lit up a piece of paper. Why? Declan didn't know, but it must've done something as Maika was ready to throw hands before she and Alyssa were separated by Raul and Laurie. All while this was happening Declan's new buddy Casper seemed to have broken out in what can only be described as a panic attack or mental breakdown. Luckily Emory acted swiftly and took Casper out into the hall. It was enough of an effect on everyone that the chaos died down quickly.

Alyssa took it upon herself to exit the room while Gloria ran out to grab some meds. To say the tension in the room was thick would be like saying a glacier is cold. It was uncomfortable to say the least. But Declan knew people here. These people could provide answers for him and he wasn't just gonna up and leave without getting those answers. His usual tick of scratching his head showed up again as he tried to come up with some kind of solution to the whole situation. What was a ghost to do? Words were comforting sure, but this was one of those times where Declan wished he had a body of his own.

He looked over to the only other person he knew, Aleah, and just sort of floated closer to her. She seemed composed despite all the drama. This was what Declan was used to from her. It was rather impressive how calm she looked. He leaned into her ear trying to keep the conversation between just them. However awkward it would look to everyone else.

"Hey you uh... You holdin' up alright?" Declan asked sheepishly. He crossed his legs and assumed a sitting position next to her. To further help cut the tension the boy who first saw Declan, Cody, spoke up and probably asked the million dollar question: How do we deal with these new powers in all this mess? In just the few days that Declan has become disembodied he had thought the same thing. How does he go about his life now as a ghost? He has managed to carve out a small semblance of it thanks to his friends but it hasn't exactly been easy. Declan looked over to the door and sighed. He hoped that Casper was okay as well as everyone else for that matter.

LittleCal LittleCal
 
Maika was frustrated she kept trying to get any word out, or even a sound and nothing. She had given up and walked away from the group dejected. She couldn't talk and she was being put as the bad guy. Sure, she had screwed up and called Alyssa a bitch but she was. Maika was feeling upset she couldn't talk and now all she wanted was to go home. She knew she could've handled the situation better, both of them could have and both had gone about it the wrong way. Maika had planned to listen through the meeting. She felt bad for all the people she had upset but she couldn't even apologize. She pushed past both Laurie and Rault and towards the bathroom. She wasn't about let herself cry around others and she was at that point. She had screwed up and lost her voice.
She was more than frustrated when she got to the bathroom and she had trouble keeping the door closed and locked. She let her hand reach up to the crystal dangling around her neck, hoping to use its power to calm down and relax. She couldn't counteract the hex placed on her but she could try and calm herself. She could try and use the natural healing powers of the crystal to calm herself and clear her anger. She needed to be in a state of calm to hope for anything to work to her benefit.
She slid down the door and was sitting on the bathroom floor and she was still trying to get a word out. She wanted her voice back and she took one of her shoes and threw it at the wall as her anger to defeat. She hated being bested and she had been. The hex was stupid and was wrong, Maika had never hexed Alyssa and of course everyone would blame her because she had to defend herself from an accusation and no one cared that Maika was always blamed for issues that weren't her fault. That maybe if she earned things based on merit and not manipulation that maybe she wouldn't be blamed but she didn't agree with anyone.
 
Laurie was taking back control of the meeting, bringing everyone back to the reason they were all gathered in his home. Alyssa has taken off outside, and it looked like one of their new guests was about to follow after her. She would need time and space, and he had no interest in lecturing her about what had just happened until after she had had time to come around on her own. That was not what she needed right now.

Aly needing space and Laurie wrangling their new witches, Raul turned his mind to Mika. She had taken off as well, and Raul figured that despite her probably wanting space, she might also appreciate a little help in working through Alyssa’s hex. He glanced over at Laurie once more, catching her eye and offering her an apologetic smile. She would have to handle the crew on her own for now. Hopefully they would not give her too much trouble while he stepped away.

Raul followed after Maika, coming to the closed bathroom door and pausing a second, listening. Something thudded against the wall and dropped to the ground. He gave a soft knock on the door, and waited.

“Maika, it’s Raul. Mind if I come in?”
 
Alyssa could hear Laurie trying to make the situation better by interacting with the newcomers. She heard people leave the gathering one by one. She wondered where they were going.

Had she ruined everything? The party had been going on nicely just before everything went to hell and it was her fault. If only she hadn't mentioned the hex that someone had tried to cast on her. If it wasn't Maika then who could it be? None of the rest of the witches in the club would ever do such a thing, so was it the work of some outsider? But why? What had she done to be attacked this way?

Alyssa tried to think of any rivalry with witches which could land her in such a situation but she could come up with nothing. Suddenly, her head started aching. She groaned. "This is so not happening." Her head ached every time her magic hurt another person. This was an old spell that her aunt had cast on her to prevent her from harming people with her magick after she killed her step father. The spell had grown weak with time, so instead of crippling her with a pain that could almost explode her brains, she just felt a really strong headache but it was enough to make her realize that what she did was wrong.

She wanted to help Maika now. It wasn't going to stop the headache but it could at least relieve her from this guilt that she was feeling. But would Maika welcome her help? Would anyone want to see her back inside?
 

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