Stuck in Heaven

Chapter Seven: The Witching Hour

Megs warily parked their bike outside of Miss Retro's, looking in. The restaurant was dark, but Megs expected it to be. Miss Holloway didn't want anyone finding out what they were doing. Aside from being sketchy as hell... it would raise questions neither of them wanted to answer. Megs had already had to field those questions. It wasn't an easy conversation to have, and they did not want to do more than one possession in a day. Which reminded them, Holloway would probably want to hear about that. It was an incredibly bizarre experience. very draining. Even once they were awake, it took them a while to get their energy back. They sighed, walking around to the back entrance of the diner. They opened the door, peering in. They followed the candlelight to just below the counter.

There sat Vivian Holloway, in her usual uniform, skirt splayed on the floor around her. She ran her fingers lightly over the pages of a black leatherbound book, with what looked to be ancient scrawlings inside. Megs wasn't sure whether her gentleness came from caution or reverence. Maybe it was both. Whatever it was, even in the dim lighting, there was something soft and delicate about the entire picture. Megs noticed something on the ground next to her- a cherry pie. Of course she'd brought them a cherry pie. It almost reminded them of that one photo Kim Whalen had posted back in their own timeline. The room was filled with an aroma similar to vanilla... maybe with a hint of vanilla. Holloway looked up when they heard Megs' footsteps. 

"Megs!" She beamed. "How was your first day at Hatchetfield High?"

"One day in, and my friends already know my entire situation." Megs chuckled. 

"Alright, let's break that down." Holloway chuckled. She passed them a slice of pie, smiling softly. "First... you've got friends!"

"I've got friends..." Megs chuckled, starting to pick at the pie. "They call themselves the Smoke Club because that's how they originally formed, but... it's a lot more than that now. Half of us don't even smoke."

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong... that's Ethan and Deb Green, her girlfriend Alice, Ziggy, Lex Foster, Sofia Reynold and Danny Daggit?" Holloway smirked. 

"We kicked Sofia and Danny out." Megs sighed. "Plus we've kinda added Peter Spankoffski and... a friend of mine. From the other timeline."

"There's someone else here from your timeline?" Holloway's eyes widened. 

"Their name is Ash, and we literally met through being fans of Starkid." Megs nodded. "They read the original fanfic- they were also here in the original fanfic. They're honestly one of my best friends."

"Well... it's great that you're not alone." Holloway nodded. "Do they seem to have any connection to the Black and White like you do?"

"No." Megs admitted. "Right now, they're just kind of here and I don't know why. Other than, of course, I originally saw them."

"Interesting..." Holloway hummed. "The Lords do everything for a reason. We'll need to be careful of them."

"Yeah..." Megs nodded. "They landed at PEIP... who placed them with the Fosters until they can get an apartment of their own."

"Oh no..." Holloway bit her lip. "Duke says nothing good about that place."

"That's because there is nothing good about that place." Megs shuddered. "I'd ask if you could get Ash a job here so they could save up for an apartment, but they've told me they wouldn't work in food service. So we'll have to figure something else out. They're studying cosmetology."

"They should check with Gerald Monroe. He told me on his lunch that his secretary walked out on him." Holloway advised. 

"Huh... he'd probably pay well too, wouldn't he?" Megs considered. "Plastic surgeons do pretty well..."