The Final Volta (1960's Lgbtq+)

<3 (this is a one shot btw)

"Those woods always had an eerie feel, are you sure you want to go in them?" Marion worried as every time they're dragged into the woods something goes wrong, high creeks, getting lost, and losing shoes to the mud it's become convinced that there is a haunting that hates him for intruding on their land. Despite all of the signs that it's not a good idea, Oscar is still begging for them to put on nice clothes to go dance in a clearing the two found last time.

"Yes! I'm very sure please put on your shirt before it gets too late to go out today" in spirit of the nature Oscar buttons up a flowery and lacy chiffon shirt in the mirror. Despite the sun not setting till 9 these days they hurry up and pull on some shoes that they'd not miss if the environment decided they'd be a nice present for them.

As they approach the edge of the large woods filled with memories and mystery they both feel the unsettling fog on the ground and the shiver it sends through them, despite the creep these woods are ignored by the town for a reason, fear. The no trespassing signs and fence are always a sign to not enter but the boys have came here for years and ever since they could remember they had been warned to stay away. As children they obeyed but in their rebellious teen years, they've moved farther, and farther away from the road never once seeing any reason to be that scared.

They wander and they wander as Oscar assures us that he remembers where the clearing is but 3 hours go by and there is no sign of the clearing or any landmarks to remember where it is.

"Its almost as if this is all new, I don't remember any of it" Oscar complains and complains

"You say that every time we are looking for something, it's not different it's just woods" Marion makes sense of it for him but also is assuring himself that its due to poor memory because they neither remember any of this area, while it may just be that they are going deeper in even from the start it looked different but it only adds to the ghostly feeling.

Nothing looks out of normal, towering trees, birds chirping and flying above, deer trotting along. They cross the creek, something they finally recognize the running water is calming and always has been but normally where they are is too deep to cross without assistance due to their poor luck but today it is shallow you can see the water splitting on the rocks. Deep enough to worry about their shoes, shallow enough to cross. Slipping them off and rolling up their pants legs they cross and instantly feel a rush of cold, for the middle of summer the water is a low temperature but the trees shade the area which does explain the oddity.

As they cross the creek they feel the world turn off, birds seemingly stop in their tracks, with no sign of deer or fox. If the area was spooky before it's haunting now.

"I don't remember us having to cross the creek before to get to the spot?"

"We didn't but maybe we're just going to enter on the other side, I know what I'm doing, I promise" but in reality, Oscar knows that promise is empty, they're as confused and lost as ever but he knows he begged to come and would feel awful if they spent 4 hours wandering for nothing.

It's scary on the other side of the creek and in the last 5 years they've never been able to cross it as much as they wanted to, bridges getting swept away by sudden high water, running out of time, losing shoes to the creek and any other reason you'd think of. They eventually gave up but today the water was calling them, inviting them to the other side.

They wandered as time ticked away; they had good talks and laughs as friends do. Their spirits conflict with the environment around them. If reincarnation does exist this wouldn't be their first lifetime together, nor the last. Souls intertwined like vines on a fence, opposite sides of the same coin, Yin and Yang, the light to the darkness, the moon to the sun. If true love did exist it would be found in their friendship.

"What's that?" Marion stops them both in worry about what is beyond but also so they can even hear.

After a short pause, Oscar hears it too and realizes "Sounds like a piano" they look back and forth at each other and what's around them, worried about what awaits them further. They look back to find an escape but nothing around seems familiar enough to run. Frozen like deer in headlights. They can't tell where the sound is coming from but they have to go somewhere so they continue in the direction they were facing.

They slowly walk listening for anything in the nature around them but there's nothing, not a bird or a twig, no breeze, no water. Just their breathing and the piano, growing louder and louder as they inch towards the source. The once playful and cheery duo are now an anxious, silent, and worried team just trying to make it to tomorrow, every second feels like hours.

As they keep walking they begin to hear chatter and happiness under the music. Color returns to their faces and worry washes away. They're purposely walking towards the noise now in hope they can be helped but as they rush in they see it. A large brick and wooden building, it's beautiful with hints of 1500's architectural style they're amazed till they look closer. It's in ruins, this building might as well be from the 1500s with how awful shape it's in. Holes in the walls, building crawling in plants, stained glass, shattered. The music and people continue so obviously there's some livability to it.

They walk through the doors and are instantly turned to the music slows and the people silence, everyone dressed in Elizabethan-styled attire, the boys were underdressed for the event but the crowd didn't seem to mind. The crowd went back to laughing and dancing. The beautiful painting on the ceiling of angel babies and heaven had fallen through in some spots where you could see the rays of sunlight shining through, candles burning lit the rest of the ballroom, they entwined hands and wandered down the staircase onto the cracked marble dance floor to join the rest.

Pausing before they enter the scene Marion lets go of Oscars' hand and bows over in a traditional manner, hand extended "care to dance?" it says in a playful and genuine tone. Taking their hand Oscar joins him in the Volta.

As the two elegantly skip around the ballroom doing bounces on cue they dance until nightfall. Staring into each other's eyes during their final turn they land in an embrace and a kiss. Childhood friends who were never just friends but were too scared to admit to the other in fear of unrequited love. Truly falling in love in mere seconds, yet those seconds feel like a lifetime unlocked until they break and gaze into each other's eyes.

The world around them seems to stop again until they are interrupted by a whisper "run." They look around at the people around them and realize none of these souls are alive. The translucency and cold chills they have. These people are ghosts. Ghosts giving a warning.

Looking at one another for reassurance before they begin to run for the stairs. Still hand in hand they see their skin fading starting at the fingertips and rushing up their arm and by the time the last sign of sun is gone, so are they. Trapped in an endless dance. Cursed to never stop.