(before i submit i'm going to get some critique)

Dark footprints were imprinted in the fall foliage mixed with dirt. The cold air blew around Lea, bathing her in a mess of autumn leaves. There was a quiver in her chin. She smelled like gingerbread– a nostalgic smell. Today was a day where cookies would smile in their tins. It looked like Thanksgiving. It felt like Thanksgiving. But it wasn’t. Not for Lea, at least. Today wasn’t a day to jump in the warm colored, crisp leaves. Today wasn’t a day to watch the Thanksgiving specials. Today wasn’t a day to be thankful. Not without them both.

Lea trudged along the rough concrete. She placed her soft hands on it. Crumbly, with a slightly strange sparkle. It was recognizable. Glitter. Back in those beautiful days, the ones where everything was going to be great, there was glitter. Purple sparkly ones blended with pink chunkier ones. A rainbow mix with fine specks of the shimmering mess. Appa used to buy sanding sugar. He liked pastels and baking, so he got them in cute colors that screamed spring. Daddy was different. He liked more hands-on experiences. Literally. He’d buy a liter of Elmer's glue and several types of glitter. Appa wore glasses, so he’d steal some contact lense solution. He and Lea would make slime for ages. And prank Appa. That was Lea’s favorite part.

Roses are red, violets are blue… Violets are blue? Lea didn’t care what color violets were (she was pretty sure they were purple). Fog filled the forest in swirls and loopty loops, creating a more eerie atmosphere. She kept walking, unaware of the presence of someone hiding in the thicket. Someone who even she wouldn’t be ready to tackle. Not to be dramatic though. Sometimes she thought she was overly dramatic. Isn’t love the real dramatic one? She wouldn’t speak. Not a sound. Not today.

Mrs. Crumble’s heavenly cookies were to die for. She could make cookies out of anything. Appa gave her leftover chapati dough and she made some delicious cookies, adding saffron and cardamom for a scrumptious chapati cookie. Lea would eat those cookies faster than a hungry tiger would gobble its prey. Lea was vegetarian. Back in those days, Sunday or Saturday would be picnic day. Mrs. Crumble joined them often. For Christmas, cookies shaped like gingerpeople would be relished. For Thanksgiving, cookies would be made with cinnamon, nutmeg, ketchup, and allspice. Mrs. Crumble would invite Lea and the family over. They would eat roasted tofu and drink apple cider. Don’t forget the cute thumbprint cookies filled with cranberry jam! Cookies were a staple of the whole year. At least, they were. The figure continued watching Lea. Maybe they were thinking of cookies too. A complete set of cookies. Just one cookie from the set was sad.

The little figure(s) were still watching. They were getting bored, watching the little girl who wouldn’t speak. Did she even have feelings at this point? A shadow finally emerged from the lonely bushes. The soft rustling startled Lea. Not for long, though. She turned around, to find a small frog. Another hopped out from behind a tree. They looked at Lea, and she looked at them. Maybe they were off to find another cookie for their tin. People looked at frogs awfully. To Lea, these frogs were the luckiest in the world. They were going to have a special tin. Decorated with lace and ribbon. She couldn’t forget the glitter. Lace cookies, sprinkled with purple sanding sugar. Tidy in a tin. Lea had lost hers. She sat down, and wept. She wept because there was nothing else to do. No one else to love.

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cool!

Moonflower4eva wrote:

cool!

thank you ^^

when green flag clicked
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play sound [it's corn! v]
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*decided to hide my weekly here since it makes me cringe TwT*

She held onto his neck, with a smile. An awful smile, of pure hatred. She was a criminal in this unexpected world, and only had so much she could do to survive. And getting rid of him was one of those things, even if she wished she didn’t have to.
“Wh-who are you…?” the man said. He couldn’t have been much older than her. What Lea found interesting was his hair. His dark blue hair.
“Lea. But that’s confidential. You won’t get to tell anyone when I’m done with you.”
He sighed, as if he was about to give up. “Okay. You’re very pretty, Ms. Lea.”
She blushed, and then brushed it off. “Don’t try to escape,” she stammered

_________

“Why are you so scared?” he asked, then flicked her chin lightly.
She looked to the ground, at her shoes. Her black shoes, with small heels. What did she do to get them? Right. She ransacked an old woman, one who was supposedly working for the FBI.
“…It’s not your business.”
After staring into her glimmering eyes, he crossed his arms. “Hmph. I’m going to die anyways, so you might as well tell me, mon cheri.”
She hesitated, yet the idea of sharing a secret with someone who she didn’t know seemed so… juicy. Like a fresh tofu burger she could sink her teeth into– so irresistible. Besides, he would be dead.
“Okay. Just… don’t call me that.” The quiver in her chin gave it all away.
He nodded, and uncrossed his hands, placing one on her shoulder.
“I’m scared he’ll… I just… Look, you’re my last chance, okay?”
Even more perplexed (and quite concerned) he tilted his head. “I don’t want to rush questions at you. Just take a deep breath. You can do this.”
“My boss. I don’t know if this is obvious, but I’m kind of an assassin.”
“You made it preeeeeeetty obvious, in my opinion.”
Lea eyerolled, before giving him a half smile. “He’s going to kill ME if I don’t get to you. I have no idea why I have to kill you, but that’s that. And I don’t want to kill you but I just–”
“Deep breaths. There. Now, I want you to tell me exactly what you’re afraid of.”
Lea took a deep breath, as he brushed away a few tears from her face with his jacket. “I’m afraid… well… Of failing?” Her hand was still at his neck, but it started to loosen.
“It’s okay to be scared,” he paused, but it seemed like he knew exactly what he was going to say. “I just want you to understand that. The thing is, we can get over fears. You don’t have to be scared.”
She let go of his jacket’s neckline, and placed it in his hand. “But I don’t know how.” she started to cry. It started with just a few drops, but quickly escalated.
“Center yourself. Feel your feet touch the ground. Say to yourself, ‘I CAN do this’.”
Lea let go of his hand, and closed her eyes, for she felt it would bring her a bit of calm. She took some more breaths, and felt his presence. He cared. And that brought her a bit of joy. Slowly, she opened her eyes.
“Better?”
“A little.”
“That’s great. Small steps.”

__________________
Lea wanted to hug him, but she was too embarrassed. What would he say? She closed her eyes, and looked at him. “Can I ask you a question?”
“It’s not ‘will you go out with me’, is it?”
“Of course not.”
“Okay, then what?” he pouted.
She looked at him in the eye. “Why did my boss want me to kill you?”
He looked at her in shock, and then looked away. “I didn’t think you’d ask.” He looked at Lea, expecting a reply, but she didn’t say anything.
“You might hate me.”
“Why is that a problem?”
“Well, I don’t want you to hate me,” he said, quieter and with his face going a bit red.
Lea took a deep breath. “Please.”
“I killed someone.”
Lea looked at him puzzledly. “Mr. Sunshine killed someone? Totally.”
“I’m serious. Dead serious.” He looked at Lea straight in the eye.
“Okay. Who?”
He looked away, and covered his eyes. “I didn’t mean to.”
“But who was it?”
“…Amaris.”
Lea took a step back, then another, and stopped. She looked at him with pure fury. With disappointment. She walked back up to him, and aggressively put her hands on his shoulders, her eyes red. “Why–why–you’re joking–” she screamed, shaking him.
“She killed my mother!”
Lea looked down. “…I’m sorry for your loss,” she whispered, even if she wished it wasn’t half-heartedly. Amaris was her mentor. Her best friend.
“Yeah, right.”
Lea shuffled to the side, the awkward silence leaving her lost.
“I didn’t mean to kill her. It just happened.”
Lea took her hands off his shoulders and placed them behind her back, unsure of what to say. “How did it happen?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know why my mother was a victim of whatever this is. I just had to kill her, I couldn’t think straight, okay Lea? My parents were the world to me.”
Lea could see it in his eyes. He’d tasted blood. He’d tasted the feeling of revenge– and at first, it was oh so sweet– but she knew he’d want more, and that’s when it makes you no longer you.

__________________
Beads of sweat covered Lea’s body as she woke from her slumber. She tossed off the blanket, and saw her room. Her normal room. She was no longer an assassin in the dark night, getting answers from the mysterious boy. The one who she didn’t know the name of.
It was a dream? The dream had a realistic quality to it, as if it had all happened. Lea tried to shake these thoughts, but in vain, for she believed every single event had occurred. It was still dark outside, so she pulled out her clock.
2:28 AM, the clock read, for it was a digital one. Though it seemed bizarre, Lea decided to take a stroll. A midnight stroll. She put on her dark coat, and as she buttoned the cute and stylish buttons, she continued to ponder her ‘dream’. She loved dreams– they were an escape from reality. After turning the door knob and locking her apartment, she started walking out of the complex. The cool and crisp air greeted her like no human she’d met would– quietly.
She wished for anything but quiet. She wanted to meet the person in her dream. Her clickety clack steps added a bit of noise to the quiet, but her dull expression gave her nothing except longing. She watched as a someone walked out of an office building, carrying a briefcase. Wasn’t her person going home from work? She started to run. Free as a bird, faster than the winds. Just as she had with Appa and Daddy, in their little house near the wildflower fields.

___________________________
“Wait!” Lea shouted, though it was strange at such a time. She didn’t want to seem drunk, and anyways, she didn’t drink. The man turned to her but for a second, and continued to walk off. He didn’t seem too concerned about some stranger asking him to wait, and continued to type something on his phone.
Lea rushed over as fast as she could, and grabbed his arm.
The man turned around in bewilderment, and soon, Lea caught a look at his hair. That dark blue, beautiful hair. That hair the color of violets that had just bloomed in front of their little house.
“Dude! What in the world–”
“Stop. Do you recognize me?”
The man turned on his phone flashlight to get a better look at Lea’s face. “Um–”
“Answer me.”
“Wh– Okay. Uh, could you give me your name?”
“Lea.”
“Lea,” the man repeated. He put his hand on his chin, and Lea watched as he got lost in thought.
“…Now that you mention it, I did meet someone named Lea. She had beautiful eyes like yours.”
“Was she an assassin?”
“Uh, I don’t remember. Maybe it was a dream or something, I dunno.”
“I don’t do ‘I dunno’s.”
The man put his phone back in his pocket and continued walking down the cobblestone sidewalk.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Lea asked, almost as if she was pleading for him to stay.
“To my apartment, obviously.”
Lea rushed over and flung her arm with the most force she could possibly muster, pulling on the man’s coat sleeve. A faded photograph fell out of his pocket, and before the man could say anything she picked it up.
“Hey, that’s–” the man started, but Lea placed her hand over his mouth.
“Not another word.” Lea looked at the picture. It was of a small house, two small houses actually, near a field of… wildflowers? Lea looked closer. There was a young boy and a little girl with two braids. It had to be her. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, but it felt like hours.
Appa, Daddy! What are you doing?
Hello, honeybun. Mrs. Crumble’s grandson has come to visit! Why don’t you say hi?
Okay! Plop plop step.
Hi, Lea! This is my grandson, Sora.
Hiya Sora!
Hm, hi.
Come on, let’s play in the flowers!
Oh-okay.
Lea holds Sora’s hand, and pulls him to the flowers.
Isn’t it magical?
Sora looks at Lea.
Yeah, it is!
Lea’s eyes started to water, at the thought of those days.
“Um, you okay?” the man handed her a handkerchief embroidered with bright fuschia flowers. The same one Lea had admired all those years ago.
“I’m okay now, Sora.”

___________________________

Sora looked at Lea with his innocent brown eyes, trying to study his face. “You’re the Lea I played with as a child?”
Lea looked at his face, which was wearing a smile. They said they’d be best friends forever, sworn together by a pinky promise. It felt like a dream that Lea never wanted to end. She didn’t want to wake up from this.
Ring ring!
“Oops, I’m sorry, I have to take this call.” Sora clicked the telephone button on his iPhone, while Lea waited.
“Hello?”
“Hi Sora, it’s Rose.”
“Oh, hey Rose. Why are you calling so late?”
“I just finished my volleyball tournament…”
“Oh my gosh, congrats! How was it?”
“We won!”
“That’s fantastic.”
Rose was a ambitious little preteen. And, xe was Sora’s pride and joy.
“They even played an Olivia Rodrigo song at the end!”
Sora clearly seemed very excited, which made Lea smile.
“I’m so proud of you, lil sis. When you get home, let’s watch a Marvel movie, mkay?”
“Yay! I have to go now. Bye, Sora!!”
The phone disconnected.
“You have a little sister?”
“Yeah. She’s twelve.”
“I remember being twelve.”
“I do too.”
“I’m so happy that she’s able to follow xyr dreams.”
The two of them held hands, and started walking on the cobblestone path, Sora’s blue hair dancing with the wind. Sora made the sky bright blue once again.

___________________________

“Are you interning?” Sora asked, as he put a quarter in the vending machine.
“Um, no.”
“Then what do you do?”
“I’m an assassin. I think.”
“Got it.” Being an assassin in this world didn’t seem to be such a problem. Sora placed his hand into the lower tray and pulled out a bottle of salty soda. “Do you want anything?”
“Thanks. A small bag of watermelon chips is okay.”
Sora put in another quarter, and immediately the bag came out. “Here you go, Lea.”
Lea took the bag. “That was nice of you.”
He put his hand behind his neck. “Aww, it’s no big deal.”
Lea tossed a chip into her mouth. “Do you want any?”
“No, it’s fine. I’m allergic to watermelons that are fried in avocado oil.”
“That’s oddly specific,” Lea replied. The two of them laughed, and Sora took a swig of his soda.
“So, how did you get hired to become an assassin?”
Lea stopped, and nibbled on a chip. How did she become an assassin? She didn’t know.
“I’m not sure. It just happened, you know?”
“I don’t know, but okay,” Sora responded.
Lea pulled out her phone. “Do you wanna take a selfie?”
“Sure.”
Lea typed in her password, and went on to the camera app.
“Say chez!”
Sora curled his fingers into a peace sign, but didn’t smile.
“I look awful,” Lea groaned.
“No, you look pretty. Just kind of dry.”
“How come you aren’t smiling?” Lea asked.
Sora shuffled around. “Well… I can’t smile. My sister Rose can. Xe has the cutest smile.”
“It’s okay. Just believe in yourself.”
“Hey, Lea? Keep this picture, you know, cause it’s our reunion picture.”
“I will. What’s your number?”
Sora typed out his number on Lea’s phone, and life felt like a fantastical dream.

___________________________

A flock of crows flew down from the sky onto the ground, near where Sora and Lea were standing.
“Sora, look. The cute little birds!” Lea looked at Sora’s face to see it had gone pale with fear.
“Lea, we can’t be here.”
“Why?”
“Crows. Love. Watermelons fried in avocado oil!”
“Wait, how is that a problem?”
“They’ll POOP on us! These aren’t your average crows!!”
Sora grabbed Lea’s hand and rushed into a parking garage under a mall. Lea, even more confused jumped as far as she could from the entrance. Fear overtakes pretty quickly.
“Won’t the crows be able to get in?” Lea asked, panicked.
Sora immediately dialed in the pin code, closing the garage. “I used to work here as a thirteen year old, so I know these things. They never change the pin.”
Lea’s jaw dropped as she looked Sora.

___________________________

“Um, so could you explain more about these crows?” Lea asked.
“Only if you give me a shortcake with a strawberry placed on top.”
Lea looked embarrassed. “Sorry, I’m not very good at baking, or cooking for the matter.”
Sora giggled. “Just teasing.”
There was an awkward silence before Sora remembered what Lea originally asked.
“Oh! You want to learn about the crows, right?”
“Yeah, if that’s okay.”
“It most definitely is!” Sora placed his hand on his chin, and did his strange smile. The strange smile that Lea loved. “SO, what do you wanna know first?”
Lea took a second to think, for she wanted her first questions to be… a good one. “Well, what species of crow are they?”
“Mph–” Sora put his hand over his mouth and started laughing uncontrollably. “Poopsicles.” Sora turned into a hiccuping monster.
“Is that potty humor? Very unprofessional.”
“I’m sorry, okay?! But that’s their nickname cause their scat freezes before touching the ground. They’re actually called Amombinatorius The Amiticus.”
“So is hail basically…” Lea drifted off.
“I’ve got to tell Rosie that one!” Both of them started laughing and became hiccupping demons in seconds.
“Hey, Lea?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re pretty cool for an assassin.”
“Thanks. You’re pretty cool for a human.”
The two of them stepped closer to each other, their faces turning pink.
“Um, Sora? Would you be okay if…”
Lea shuffled around, twidling her thumbs.
“Would you be okay if I bought you a pair of fairy wings? So we could be fairy twins.” Lea took a deep breath. She didn’t want to seem to childish.
Sora sighed, but it soon turned into a smile. “Of course! I would love that oh so much!”
The two continued munching on their snacks in the garage, talking about their fandoms, hobbies, and dreams.
__________________

“I remember my obaasan. She used to make cookies and treats for me.”
“Yeah, I remember Mrs. Crumble. She was like a pati for me too, you know.”
“She would always add nutritional stuff to her cookies, like raisins! They would still taste splendid though.”
Lea looked up at Sora.
“You must miss her so much…” Lea frowned. Two years ago, Mrs. Crumble died.
“Wait, what do you mean?”
“I mean she’s… you know…” Lea made her finger dash through her neck.
“Waaaa? No way. I saw her a month ago. She lives with my Papa now, though. You know, cause she’s pretty old now.”
Lea started tearing up. Today was so full with emotions. Mrs. Crumble was alive?
“Hey, don’t cry. I know this is huge, and well… Do you wanna see her?”
Lea looked at Sora’s eyes. “I do. I really, truly want to. I miss her so much. Almost as much as… As Appa and Daddy.”
“I’ll take you, okay? We can go see her.”
“Thank you, Sora. Thank you so so much.”
Sora wrapped his hands around Lea, and Lea did too.
__________________

“Do you remember?” Lea asked.
“Uh, remember what exactly?”
“That we’re in a locked parking garage.”
“Oh, right!” Sora laughed.
The two of them started to play chopsticks, a fun game to pass the time, for the angry mob of crows was still outside. Lea used the time to reflect on today. She couldn’t tell between a dream and reality. Was this life– or was it just a figment of her wild imagination?
“Do you enjoy dreams?” It was a question that had been lingering in Lea’s head.
Sora tilted his head. “Why do you ask?”
“…Just wondering.”
“I like to think that everything is a dream. That every single choice is ours– even if we don’t realize it.”
“What do you mean by that? It’s not like I wanted to get a D on a test back in sixth grade.”
“I mean, you had the choice to study. You had the choice to say things like ‘I WILL do well on this test’. When you don’t make good choices, the inevitable will happen.”
“That… that actually makes sense.” Sora had a way with words– even the most complicated concepts seemed so simple when he explained them.
“I’m happy it did!”
Lea shuffled her fingers. “You win– new game?”
“I actually wanna play Co-co-nut right now!”
“Okay! That’s cool… but…”
“But what? If you don’t wanna play, that’s okay.”
“I don’t know how to play.”
Sora smiled ambitiously. “Well, I shall teach you!”
Slowly, Sora started to explain the game to Lea, moving her fingers and his to create the different stages of the “coconut”. He also repeated the chant with her.
“This actually seems rather interesting.”
“It is!” Sora and Lea both felt like young children once again, dancing in the bursts of fuchsia and indigo.
Soon, Lea started the game. “Co-co-nut, co-co-nut, co-co-nut crack!”
They played for maybe fifteen minutes, and took a break, nibbling on their food rations. The crows had quite a temper, and wouldn’t stop their tantrums.
“I’m so bored,” Lea pouted, trying not to lose her posture.
“Ugh, same. Do you wanna look through my bag? It might have some games or gum.”
“Okay.” Sora handed Lea the bag. It was a cloth one that had the words “Whole Foods Market” written on it in white. The bag itself was a deep forest green. Lea overturned the bag, the contents spilling out. A pride pin, some change, a few books, his computer (which was thankfully in a case) and a pen case came out. “No gum.”
“Oh. Oops,” Sora said, sheepishly.
“Don’t say sorry– it’s not like you promised there’d be gum.”
“That’s fair.”
A few moments passed, before Lea realized something. What if this was a dream? What if all these moments passed, and she’d never get to relive them. Maybe Sora was her imagination. Maybe. But she wasn’t going to lose him.
“Wanna be best friends?”
Sora looked at her with his compassionate eyes. His deep blue hair whistled with the wind, covering her eyes. She felt as he planted a kiss on her cheek, and turned a deep shade of pink.
“I'm sorry, mon cheri.” The name that Lea hadn't wanted.
The world turned brown. His hair's color had been under a façade, and so had he.
__________________


PATHS TAKEN: 101-1, 5-1, 4-2, 1-2, 2-2, 3-2, 7-5, 6-2, 81-3, 9-1 | SABOTAGE RESULTS: 1- F, 4- S;3- S;2- S;8- S;5- F, 7- F, 9- S;6- S | ENDING: neutral

path image: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/718006521/

when green flag clicked
forever
play sound [it's corn! v]
end