WITH: Suraj @b4rredteeth WHERE: Scaredy Cat

Well excuuUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUu se me

She'd suppose that would be true ... if not for the fact that she knew that one way or another, someone could escape their tragic lives. Hashtag wasn't sure whether or not Aretha Hatzi ever actually escaped her existence in Greece but if she hadn't wanted to be found, no one would know, hence the missing aspect of the woman's life and her curse of sharing her face. There also came a possibility that maybe she hadn't escaped anything. You needed DNA to make a mirroir, right? The thought lingered in her mind though she never quite did anything with it. Why would she? This was her life. The original Aretha Hatzi's life was her own, even if it was over ... but sharing the same face meant that sometimes, she shared the same name. "Shame. There's a whole big world out there," Outside of Anchorage, Alaska. She wouldn't argue. There was a reason he thought such a thing. "I've been here for maybe six months, seven tops. I don't get out much." Between work, her apartment, the dinky diner she frequented often when she wasn't being dragged to Dusty and Sera's for dinner, or doing the same to some poor unlucky soul at her place. "I'm Arie, or Aretha if I don't like you." She laughed and while it sounded humored, she felt empty, but she could pretend. She had to. What were the odds she'd meet someone who knew Aretha once upon a time, much less MORE than one.

Staying here might just be, well, a dumb fuckin' thing to do. Grim smile besmirching his features, the mirthless laughter that escaped coincided the pinch of his digits dragging the joint away from his lips. Smoke dispelled through his nose in a whorl of dragon's breath, the sound of a horn culling the silence of the wharf below remained to send chills running down his spine. Of his peripheral, the shifting figure appeared as those silhouettes that would dance about or peer into his line of vision, and only when he turned his head, did he ascertain they were truly standing there. The face was vaguely wonted, but that could be from anywhere: Anchorage was not so small that everyone knew everyone, and he'd been here-and-there for so much of his life, faces were a phantom grasp on cognition. "Mm, not all of us got that choice," he confessed, lackadaisical complacency to his own fate. It was harder now to morph into oblivion and become a blip on the radar with seven kids in tow. Cyrek couldn't uproot them like his siblings, forsake them to a childhood filled with uncertainty more than it was, as it stood. Flicking ash from the end of it, squandered into the dewy grass, he nodded to her. "You from here? Feels like I've seen you 'round." Wouldn't be a surprise — the pub saw a wide range of people, milling in and out.

sometimes i fantasize that someone misses me

Arie knew that was coming but hey, she was nothing if not prepared. "I'm from a tourist trap in Greece, though I've been traveling for a few years. I guess I found something I enjoy in the strange sense of familiarity if I decided to stay here, kourasménos ánthropos." What that was, Arie hadn't decided yet. Even if this was it, this was the last stop and she truly was abandoned here, she couldn't pinpoint the exact excuse that wasn't an excuse at all. "Spoken from experience? I don't remember much these days about home, but I think I enjoyed the possibility of never seeing someone again much less having all of my secrets known to everyone and their mother." This conversation was... normal? and erratic. "It helps that I see code in everything, even veterinarian medicine. There's a code in us." And the amount of possibilities it would take for two people to meet in a place like this. The probability of them liking each other enough to continue a conversation? Far more larger. "I can do tthat. I will also tell you, I live in those shitty apartments but I spoil Ziggy like crazy. I think he eats better than I do, actually. But if you ever want to check it out and approve it, you can. I don't mind -- I'll see if I can get a day off and make a day out of it if Ziggy wants to."

Matevos grinned, then frowned. He didn’t comment on it however, as much as he wanted to. He was certain he was going to coax her into doing it, and then he was going to regret it afterwards. Though the act sounded very nice. He nodded. “Where are you from?” he asked. “It is definitely a change, but… you know, they might know each other, but nobody really knows each other. That’s kind of the dangerous thing about small towns, everyone knows something about someone else they’d like to judge about.” He smiled, noting the pride in her voice, very much enjoying how she seemed to be enjoying what she was doing. He understood that, it was why he’d never give up his own job as a vet, even though it was definitely made more difficult by his life in crime. “Depends on who does it,” he suggested. “Your job also sounds like fun, but you’d probably have more fun doing it.” But, his job was definitely a lot of fun, though perhaps mostly after hours when he could cuddle the dogs and take them on walks. Not so much the diagnosing of animals, unless if it was things that could be easily healed. “Well, you can always bring Ziggy in and see if he takes to any of the cats, I wouldn’t really let these poor creatures stay over at anyone’s before meeting their present company… you know, kids, animals, other pets. I’ve had too many regrets over the years.”

KEKE PALMER as EMERALD HAYWOOD  NOPE (2022) dir. by Jordan Peele

WHO: Arissa @couldvebccn WHERE: THE CREAMERY ICE CREAM & COFFEE BAR.

She was tired, so tired she almost found herself in the same predicament as someone she spoke to earlier that week -- but whatever his reason had been, hers was different. Between working at the station and spending most of her time on her computer elsewhere, she felt like she could take a nap and only be rested if it had been a month rather than a few hours. She'd probably do that once she finished the code she had been working on but for now? On her fourth cup of coffee, she reached out to give someone a fist bump. Arie knew the person but the voice seemed far away rather than passing her on the way to get something for themselves. "Chill out on the coffee, Are. You'll never sleep again." they teased her and her heavy head shook no, shoulders shrugging. "I'll sleep when I'm dead." Bad joke? Too soon? Ah, whatever.

The person mumbled and Arie looked up at them only for her eyes to meet someone else's. A familiar person with a set of eyes peculiarly similar to her own. In fact, she couldn't ask why because she already knew. Of all places the powers of the Dead Idol could stick her, they chose the place with Aretha Hatzi's sister. The sister she looked like and DNA wise WAS. They hadn't told her much about Aretha, just the basics, the rest she learned by deep diving Aretha's entire existence from birth down to the potential second she disappeared off the face of the Earth. She'd be lying if she had said she didn't check in on the Hatzis, including Arissa, from time to time, but it was less frequent than it had been when she first started. "Do I know you?" is all that she found herself managing to ask, coffee cup lingering around her mouth. If she ran now, someone would definitely notice.

🖤 & 💌

💌 - How would they confess to their love interest? Would they wait on a confession?

Arie tends to be very forth coming in a few aspects. If she likes-likes someone, she tends to be forward about it in the sense of, "Wanna come to my place?" but in the same notion, she tends to keep people at an arms length and pushes people away when they get too close for her taste emotionally. She'd be the type to need the other to take her hand and pull her close, and really tell her they feel the same way. Depending on the situation, she might even blurt out something like, "You're so stupid, I love you."

🖤 - What's something that will instantly make them dismiss someone as a romantic partner

Despite the fact that she doesn't let people in and does terrible things computer wise, she's not entirely heartless. If the partner is mean to her, mean to someone she cares for, hurts animals or children, is a terrible person all around, etc, that's the quickest way for Arie to slam the door on their face and maybe burn everything they own. She has SOME morals after all.

She preferred the comfort of hiding behind a computer for two reasons, one of which might be easier for a trained eye to pick up on; 1. when it was discovered she had a skillset and quickness of computers, the Dead Idols spoke less and less to her face to face. They didn't need to be so heavy handed with her as they would someone who'd be trained in hands on tactile training such as fighting or toxicology. 2. being awkward meant that it weeded out certain people. Could you tolerate awkwardness? Yeah? Slide in, buckle down, and wait out the ride in which the end meant Arie actually gave a shit about someone. She wasn't sure about Sera persay and how the other felt, but Arie? Arie cared for the the little family so much that even if she couldn't say it, she showed it. Her skills with Dusty's allowed her to keep the station tightly locked down and at the end of the day, she was more than happy to play with little Crash and keep him entertained while they worked. In fact, anyone at the station was. If she didn't know this was a mission she was waiting for, she'd almost be glad to stay here forever. A side effect of six months of silence on the Dead Idol's end but they knew that, didn't they? They had to know that. Wasn't that the reason their mirroirs could eventually blend in so well?

Arie neared closer, seeing the man struggle. A small frown graced her lips as she saw him struggling. If anything, it was care that told her Dustin needed sleep, not more coffee. "I'd say yes but I think Sera might kick my ass if I take you on a late night adventure that voids you from sleep. In again, why not?" You could call it machoism if you wanted but it was something else. A joke, maybe. She admired his dedication to the station but she also wanted to reassure him that it would still be standing when they'd get back. Closing the distance between them now, she took the coffee pot from him and put it back on the burner. Flicking the machine off, she turned back, "I think I can handle that. No fire, got it." At the mention of Crash's godmother, Arie gave a little laugh. "I think you should warn her, not me. I'm pretty sure Boyd has a crush." Boyd, some normally faceless what.... janitor? Mic man? Sometimes it depended on the day. "No fires and definitely no alarming godmom, I promise."

The night was still, tranquil save for the pattering against the sills of the station's windows, and the tower above the building echoing an eerie howl of the plaintive winds as if it were a woeful virago. Dustin had always been a diligent pupil, at the expense of his own health, and it persisted into the summertime without the diluting of coursework — instead, he was battened by the self-imposed concerns of the time the pair would be spending away in the first half of August before classes resumed. His head craned aside when he heard the shuffling of feet entering the break room, his alertness of his surroundings making up for the shortcomings of Sera's ever-dwindling hearing ( a facet of which, he still did fret. ) He smiled warmly at Aretha, partial instinct thereby overridden out of compassion for his employee. As awkward as she seemed, at times, the empath had kept a studious eye on her — sometimes, it felt like an armor he was forced to don. The frigidity of his thoughts, especially given the news of Willow's demise, had an engine purring with chariness for his surroundings. However, he'd had a fluttering in his chest from the moment he showed the woman the reason for the Graves-Seongs' paucity of promptness to her application. Anyone who was so privy to a recluse who melted at the sight of Tyche Jungsoo was staunch, in his book ( and yes, he did keep track, hyperthymesia recording it for him. )

"Rita," he'd coined his own nickname — partially on account of correcting a mishap of Sera becoming lost in translation at first meeting, "I can come with if you can drive." A joke hung in the void that he couldn't, failing to bloom as he fumbled to grip the handle of the coffee pot with dystonic fingers. His palm pressed firmly against it, thumb gripping the top of the handle, whilst his recoiled digits were in rigor mortis against his palm, tendons of his wrist visibly tensing as he kept it outstretched long enough to pour out the mug in his other palm. Carefully balanced on the partially ( but significantly less ) stiff fingers of his opposite hand, he held it out to the engineer. His amblyopic eye shook nervously as his strength dwindled, mustering enough to empty the pot into a second mug. "I thought I'll stay and record stuff, get a headstart for the next couple weeks... Cohosts can take the live stuff, just —" A yawn intercepted, blearily sticking his hand into a hole of his distressed Gengar sweater to rub against his shoulder blade. "Don't let anybody burn down the studio. Dios mio." Sheepish when he splashed the coffee over the mug a bit, hands obstinately refusing to cooperate in full, he turned to face her. "Think you can handle it, kid?" Pausing, the two-toned metalhead pouted his lip, myriad of piercings protruding, and nodded vaguely down the hill outside. A branch was thumping against the pane. "I'm, uh, gonna have Crash's godmother stay while we're out. So don't be alarmed."

WHO: Dusty @drvgonbvnny WHERE: 107.5 BLACK DRAGON PEARL RADIO.

It wasn't unusual for her to work just a little bit later than most at the radio station. While it had been an attempt to incorporate herself into the town and adjust while waiting for her assignment, she actually really enjoyed the work she did. The people she worked for, and under, were part of that. If you asked her, she wouldn't be able to say she cared for them exactly, and in fact she couldn't. They were causalities in her life. Telling people she didn't give a fuck about anyone would mean they'd survive another day and keep them from the truth of it all. Heartless? No, she liked them too much to pull them down with her. Their bullshit and her bullshit were mighty different. So in the end, it really was a never ending nightmare of wanting to love these people and knowing she'd have to leave them one day.

Hearing her stomach growl, she put her headphones down and went in search of food in the break room. She had thought everyone left but she wasn't surprised when she saw Dusty there, hunched over a thing of coffee probably. "You look how I feel but good news is, I think the sound issue is a cord thing. We'll have to get another one." Because let's be honest, between the two of them? They kept every mechanical detail so neat you could graze it with a fine toothed comb and not find an issue. The cord might account for the fact that the last show had a slight cut here and fizzle there. Sometimes, cords just go bad. She would take care of it because Dusty and Sera had a baby to take care of whereas Ziggy could handle waiting for his feeder to go off... but there he was, and Arie wasn't alone once again.

"You're still important." Arie pointed out. Diners worked a lot like computers, as did any business and their employees. She saw it as coding rather than the human race. Weird? Mabe. It helped, a little, but it was just a reminder to pay better close attention to her surroundings. She had a habit of scrolling the dark web and chatting with a penpal of sorts once she got into it. The world could've literally ended, and in some ways it had, with the recent death effecting everyone around her in a way that couldn't get to her the same way. If it had been someone else, someone close to her whether she'd admit it, she'd be a fucking mess right now... but either way, she'd still be here in this moment. She just needed to unwind regardless. "It's a pleasure to meet you officially Suraj. Better circumstances too, I'm sure." Because this wasn't for some business gain but rather personal and Arie needed personal.

Arie laughed at their joke, facial features warming with amusement. "Everyone has moves. We just need to find yours." Maybe a stretch but as she took their hand and lead them to the dance floor, she locked eyes with a familiar figure and called out to her. "Show me what you got Lacey." For a moment she let go of their hand and joined the woman, giving them a show. "Sometimes it's in the hips like this."

“Oh uhm, no worries!” Suraj cut in right away. It was almost normal to be ignored when they were working, whether they were serving or washing dishes. “I uhm, I mostly wash dishes anyway, so you probably wouldn’t have seen me anyway,” they added quickly. That and the fact that Suraj was great at being unnoticed. “Nice to meet you, Arie,” they said quickly, to make sure they wouldn’t forget the name. “I am certain you aren’t,” they added. “And else you can blame it on the music being too loud,” they suggested. A joke that had been used on them twice already in different circumstances, and one they liked. They blushed offer, having to consider it for a moment before letting out a laugh. “Sure,” they said. “Though let's keep calling them moves and not good moves because I am a very bad dancer.” They held out a hand to her, given how crowded the dancefloor was, attempting a self assured smile. Rare moments of confidence had to be taken advantage of, and the fact that they’d seen her about a dozen times now, made it much easier. They’d rely on the safety of the crowd.