THANTOPHOBIA
noun.
the phobia of losing someone you love
"So, the Witches are going to expand into the forest to allow more wood to be harvested, and the Geko's can have ownership of the nearby lake for any mining they would like," Sylvia explained, pointing to the map sprawled out on the table. The other residents of the town stood around, nodding in agreement. Except one.
"What real benefit does the lake give us?" The man on the other side of the table spoke.
"Huh?"
"The Witches are gaining more land, which provides more space to do whatever they want, but us Geko's get a lake. What can we really do with that?" The man spoke up.
"The extra space is simply so we can gain more wood to improve the village, not for our own gain."
"It is still more profitable than a lake."
"While you aren't wrong, everyone else has agreed on this. You are the only one that sees a problem in this." Sylvia stated, gesturing to the rest of the table.
"Geko, it's a majority vote, be grateful you're getting anything." Moe piped up.
"Maybe I'm the only one who can see a problem." Geko felt a nudge on his side. He turned to see his friend, Charlie, shaking their head. He hadn't even realised he was standing, but slowly sat back down.
"The expansion plans will be started tomorrow."
And with that, the meeting ended.
The growing tension only grew more.
The residents of the SMP all retreated back to their homes and bases for the night as to not attract too many monsters. As they all lay in bed, the beginning of a vengeful plan was set into motion.
"I'm gonna go check on the animals!" Springy shouted out from the door.
"Okay! Have fun!" Sylvia shouted back from the basement. Not long after, however, was Sylvia met with the screams of their friend. They sprinted up the ladder and out the door, boosted by adrenaline.
As they exited the door, they saw a bloody sight. The carcasses of the Witch's puppies were sprawled out on the porch, their blood spilled all over the area. Sylvia's good friend Springy was on her knees as she let out pained sobs. They fell to their knees next to her, pulling her into a hug to hide her eyes from the horrific sight. Sylvia comforted her, trying to calm her uneven breath and tears before pulling her up and leading her inside.
"I'll clean up outside, then we can go find the fucker who did this, okay?" Sylvia mumbled to their friend. Springy nodded slowly, wiping the tears from her face.
Sylvia carefully dug out a few plots for the puppies before carefully placing them in one by one. They wiped their own tears away before cleaning up the remaining mess from the gory sight before checking on their friend. As they went to walk inside however, they spotted a note next to the door. It simply read, "This is just the beginning. -Y ". They stuffed the note in their pocket before grabbing their friend and leaving.
They both quickly called a meeting with the town, walking up to the meeting hall.
Once everyone had made their way into the room, Sylvia quickly shut them up.
"Okay, I don't know what kind of practical joke someone is playing on us, but it is not funny." Sylvia seethed out, trying to calm her own nerves. The group looked at each other in confusion.
"What happened?" Charlie asked quickly.
"Someone thought it would be really funny to slaughter our dogs," Sylvia said quietly as to not stress out their friend any more than they already were. The room fell quiet.
"Who would do something like that?" Charlie said, shock evident on their face.
"Are you sure it wasn't an animal attack?" Geko said calmly, unfazed by the situation.
"Could an animal write this?" They said, pulling the note out of their pocket, tossing it onto the table. Willow hesitantly took the note.
" 'This is only the beginning' ? What is that meant to mean?" Willow sighed out. "And who's Y?"
"You think I know? That's why we're here." They spat in a frustrated tone.
"Well, does anyone know someone who's name begins with Y?" Toasty asked, looking between them.
"Some of us aren't using our real names, does anyone's name begin with Y?" Charlie asked. The room stayed silent.
"You think anyone will say that theirs does? They would be accused immediately." Geko sighed.
"You seem really calm for what's happening at the moment, Geko." Moe said, looking at him.
"You're accusing me? Last I remember your name begins with Y, Yaqq" Geko spat out. The table gasped.
"Yaqq..." Sylvia sighed out.
"I know you know, so it would be stupid of me to use my name, but you, on the other hand..." Moe began.
"You were the only one who knew my name began with Y, so it would be smart for you to use me as a trick so everyone would suspect me. Truly, it would make more sense for you to have done this. You showed a clear distaste for Sylvia yesterday, so you have a motive" Moe explained. After a minute of silence, Sylvia spoke up.
"Geko, I won't accuse you of anything, but, I see you near any other people's land doing anything mildly suspicious, I will take more serious action." Sylvia said lowly, their voice turning monotone.
"You're really believing him of all people?" Geko asked in surprised anger.
"The same goes for him too, right know you are the two most likely to have been the culprit." They replied. The room went quiet once again. Quietly, Springy spoke up.
"I don't want anyone at the Cottage Witches house unless you are Sylvia or Toasty. Everyone else needs to stay away for a while. Please." She said, her voice slightly shaky. Everyone agrreed softly.
"That's it for this meeting. All scheduled meetings and projects are postponed until this "Y" is caught."
