What Not To Do In The Valley

Dismemberment Lake

John Doe kept Kimber busy with what he could gather, though he was surprisingly off-topic. The investigation was confined to after his work hours because it confused his priorities during the meat house case and he didn't know how to explain the situation to his boss. 

The witches and the firepit had led nowhere but accidentally revealed his inability to recognise faces. Kimber suddenly trusted him a whole lot less. 

She'd gone with him to help look, conveniently getting out of tonight's plans. 

Jay was chasing Benny around to get back a stolen beanie, vaulting over furniture to get an advantage. 

Mrs Hive was around and keeping Micheal and Dart busy. Will shifted on his feet in the corner of the room, trying not to get given any work. He knew nobody else would take Kimber's place.

Emmy, a twelve-year-old who has been here since she was ten, had said last night that she'd never been to Dismemberment Lake. That sparked the shocking realisation that they hadn't been to the lake in a long time. 

It was now Will's job to be their guide. He didn't want to dislike Kimber, but this task made him very nervous. 

He settled Jay and Benny and began spreading the instruction to stagger their leaving times and wait by the rotten tree stump with garbage around it. 

Quite a few of them didn't finish dinner before deciding to go. Will made his way to the pantry and uncovered a box of breakfast bars, pocketing a few. 

He rocked on his feet from toe to heel, thinking about the work he had to get done in the basement. It was effectively halted for another week or so from all the help everyone needed.

The living room was warm from the fireplace. As he climbed out the back window, a chill hit his face. He nervously crunched his way through the garden, regretting wearing shorts.

Emmy was sitting away from the others, as usual. Perched atop a rusted oven, watching him get closer. 

They took the long way there because very soon it would be the time of year townsfolk too head to the lake. They were already cutting it close. 

Will looked back to Jay as they reached a bush with a blue ribbon tied around. 

"Sure you're not human?" He asked, sharply. 

"Uh..." Jay cleared his throat. "I don't know."

Will gestured to the path they walked on. "Look down, look down."

Jay looked at Will, and then the trees past him. Scaring Will to the point where he put a hand on the back of Jay's head and moved it himself. Whispering softly, "Don't look anywhere else. I'll tell you when you can look up again."

Benny uncomfortably half followed the instructions before crossing a set of arms and looking at the bushes around them. 

There was a slow rustling ahead. The crumbling of old stones and wet flesh. 

Will kept his gaze on his feet and his focus on Jay beside him. 

"Hey," Will said weakly. 

Bones clicked against each other, and the mass of meat leaned up against an old well waved them. Only Benny and the confidently inhuman could see.

Its hand was poorly maintained and barely able to move past the elbow, which was as high up the arm as they could see before the body became a mass of mince, pork and skinned animals melted together. It had no rotting smell to it. The meat was being used.

"Hey guys," responded the meat pile. She sounded like she was in her early twenties, a somewhat low voice riddled with casual boredom.

Emmy half-smiled at her, as shy as she would be to anyone else. The corpse's head lolled over the edge of the well and out of sight, so there was no uncomfortable eye contact to be made, but she knew Mary's Sister didn't need eyes to see. 

Jay had never visited Mary's Sister before. When she asked who he was, he wanted to look to Will for answers so badly. He ended up responding to everything with "I don't know."

"Nice arms, Benny," She noted as he passed. 

Benny hadn't thought Mary's Sister would have noticed them from so far. He gave her an awkward smile and pulled up his sleeve a bit. He could move the stubby fingers of his second biggest set, now. "Still getting used to them..."

"We need a game night or something," She suggested. "To break the ice."

It was clear they were just passing through, but she rarely had other times to see them. 

"How would we do that," Will asked, slowing to a stop to let her speak.

"It doesn't have to be with everyone. I just think we'd get along better if we had something to do."

Will nodded. "Yeah. I'll let them know." 

They continued on their walk.

"Charades?" She asked. 

"Dart likes that one," Will told her. 

Further down the road, Will let go of Jay and looked up again. Making sure everybody's still with him. 

Benny's eyes didn't move as much as usual. He kept tugging down on his sleeve.

"You okay?" Will asked him. 

"I just don't like to think about it." He bit his lip. "The human thing. I still kinda feel human."

Will nodded. 

Emmy stared at him intently. Probably wanting to ask to take over his turns bringing Mary's Sister fresh meat. 

"I mean... seeing her doesn't mean you're soulless," Will said. "Your body just won't host her."

They reached a river and followed it to Dismemberment Lake. 

As they arrived,  Will slid off his shoes and found a place to sit as a few others went to the water. Emmy was discouraged by the animal bones on the shoreline, but Will made it clear there was nothing in the water that would do it to her. 

No matter how brave Jay felt standing knee-deep in the pond, or how much he bragged to Benny on the shore, there wasn't a threat bigger than drowning or getting an infection from fiddling with a bone. 

There was an easy path from the lake to the Town that they had to keep an eye on just in case. People liked to come here, too. 

Most of the Harrow House residents couldn't swim, this was the best place to learn.

Benny hadn't learnt yet, but eagerly chased after Jay to splash him. He started screeching when his head was shoved underwater. Kicking Jay's leg out and tripping him in vengeance. 

Sometimes amateur killers would hide their victims in the area. It was good last-resort food for the desperate. Benny wandered over and checked for any in the bushes to tell Kimber about. 

Will didn't like the place much. He didn't like sand, water, or dead bodies. He only came here for the bones. 

Bones which Jay had notably started collecting. He'd dropped his tough guy act and became almost hypnotized by filling his arms with specific kinds of bones. 

Once he couldn't carry anymore, he sat down not too far from Will and stared off into the water.

Will looked at him strangely. "I normally bring a bag," He told Jay. "I should have... wasn't in the mood tonight."

Jay glanced to the bones he held. Uncertain. 

He thought about responding or explaining himself but turned away. Piling the bones on his lap and looking through them one by one. He kept them close.

"Is this voluntary?" Will asked, growing serious. "It's not hypnosis, right?" 

"Um... no?" Jay said quietly. He turned a vertebrae in his hands. "Maybe."

"I won't judge. Benny's not looking." Will tried to move closer. "What do you wanna do with it?"

Jay's eyes went wide and he shut his mouth. Looking around fearfully. 

He pushed himself back, shouting, "I'm not telling you!"

Emmy finally got the courage to play in the water just as Will began to truly worry about Jay. 

He got up and left Will for the forest. Disappearing through the bushes with only the bones in his pockets and hands.