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Marco slid his skeleton mask on. "I just don't think it's a good idea for you to come, Star. Things can get... uh... messy."
"Marco, I'm from a dimension that has mass fires and death every so often. I think I can handle seeing a little blood." She crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow at her well dressed friend.
The ghoul hummed an unsure hum.
She hummed, determined back.
"Okay, okay. Fine, just- this doesn't change anything about me, okay?" Star nodded happily in response. "And get a mask on."
Using her wand, she poofed a shiny pink butterfly mask and her outfit changed into a breezy pink shirt and jeans, her hair was put in a ponytail.
Marco buttoned up his suit cuffs and jumped out the window. Star followed close. Marco scurried over fences and hid in bushes. Soon, Star seen his normally brown eyes bleed into their primal black and red.
He stilled. Soft footsteps incoming.He usually didn't hunt- but hey, Star wanted a show, right? Speaking of, the girl began to talk. "Why are we-" but was immediately hushed by a soft purplish tentacle covering her mouth. The other part of his cursed rinkaku shot out of the bush and caught something, making it yelp.
Marco couldn't stop a small amount of drool drip from his mouth (as if having to eat in front of someone wasn't humiliating enough) as he dropped Star and brought his prey closer. His purple (albeit more blue) koukaku unsheathed from his shoulder and he was prepared to slotter his meal. First thing he observed about it was an olive green hat and dark blue hair- not to mention familiar face- wait... he dropped her and groaned, flipping off his mask. "Hahah! I so called this. Marco, the ghoul." Janna. She gestured her hands in wonder. "Eat me, Marco. We can be one."
The latino flinched back. "Yeah, no. Ugh, just don't report me or whatever. Come on, Star. We have to go grocery shopping now." Mid-groan, Star was startled. Two blood red tendrils whipped from outside the bushes, one catching the human, the other a mewman. "Star!"
"Huh. That was surprisingly easy." A voice said.
"Told ya it'd be." Another said, the smile easily found in her voice.
Marco growled as he flipped down his mask. He lunged from the bushes, lifted by his octopus-like rinkaku. In a snap, his koukaku was unsheathed. He glared at the brunettes- in twin masks that carried his friends with their tails. They were bears. "They're mine. Return them or pay the price, theif." He was lowered to the ground and he took a karate stance, using his koukaku blade as an extention of his hand.
The male growled, tightening his hold on Star. Other than that he was silent, unlike his sister. Janna was held more comfortably and was getting her hair braided. She stopped and moved her behind herself. "Hi! Sorry about your food, I'm Mabel, this is my brother Dipper. We're peaceful ghouls that demand you don't eat these humans. Also we're confiscating your number. That'd be great too."
"Mabel, seriously?" Said brother gestured wildly to his mask. The girl shrugged, grinning wildly.
"I wasn't going to eat them, you damn hippies. They're my friends and Star isn't even human." Marco huffed. He hated people like this. Sure, he understood, but he didn't do anything wrong.
Star wriggled her mouth from Dipper's tight grip. "Can you let me go?"
Dipper eyed the other ghoul, but dropped her and Marco immediately pulled her behind him. To which she rolled her eyes. Marco bore his eyes into Mabel, waiting for her to drop Janna. With a "tch." She did.
Their kagunes vanished as well as Marco's.
"Whatever. Mabel, this isn't working out. I mean, we're obviously not cut out for the whole "justice" thing. Can't we just continue what we were doing before?" Dipper pouted.
"You're pouting, mr. Grumpy grump~" Mabel chimed.
"No I'm n~Ot." Dipper's voice cracked.
His sister laughed and Marco became disinterested. "As long as I don't see you guys again, do what you want." Marco left.
Star ran after him. "Wait! They seem like good people!"
Janna pointed a finger gun at the twins before leaving.
Dipper sighed, aggravated before stomping off. Mabel rolled her eyes, but followed. "What's wrong brobro?" Dipper groaned.
"Bill. Mabel, I don't think we're cut out to be... good. The way you want to. I mean, you can do it, but it's just not me." She grabbed his hand and swung their arms together.
"Bro, chill. Mabel's on the case! You want to know what I think you need?"
"Mabel, no."
She bumped shoulders. "Synthesized Music therapy! Just listen to that baby for hours and evil Bill-like thoughts will disappear. No matter how desperate you are."
"...you actually do that? And it works?"
"Heck yeah!"
"You've never told me this! Why have you never told me this?"
-
The man... The woman.
The man had black hair, darker than the night sky. The woman's was a wild brown.
They were both untamed. Two ghouls, living free and doing as they please. Slowly, the woman gained an appreciation for human life, but the man still resented it. When the time came to have a child, the woman tamed herself... the man... he ran away.
Tap tap tap tap tap.
The little girl ran.
Tap tap tap tap tap.
Not from home. She's never truely had one.
Tap tap tap tap tap.
Broken sobs and strangled gasps escaped her. Her vision became blurred and her head was thrown into a whirlwind of dizziness.
Tap tap tap tap tap.
The beast was upon her. She heard him. His taps, the hollow sound that followed. He was right behind her. She seen the lantern's haunting blue glow. Swipe. Bella tripped over his foot. She faceplanted the ground and cried. She knew there was no point in getting up. She knew that she had no hope. She also knew what would happen next. The beast loomed over her in his wooden mask stained of blood. "Where's your family, little one? What happened to that shread hope you had when you were running?"
Bella felt his rinkaku frame her face. She gulped and shook her head crying. "Mommy left me! Okay?! I'm all alone now!" She cried, trying to push away his vine-like appendage.
The beast looked at her curiously, more of his kagune wrapped around her. "Where's your father?" The blue light flickered brighter, illuminating the back alley further.
She cried more, struggling to gasp. The beast held tighter. "Tell me NOW."
"Leave her alone!" A second small voice demanded. Too heroic for a little one.
Bella's head was snapped to the side and her body was tucked away. The beast glared at the offender. A small ghoul, it seemed. He stared at him and his pink lion cub mask curiously. He startled when three others leapt behind him. "Your tyranny is over beast, give up your binge eating or be destroyed." A voice, slightly strained, (or maybe it was just like that?) came from the tall slender woman with the bird mask.
"Yeah! Binge eating's my job!" The puma laughed a few times.
From the middle, the biggest of the group, the beast felt a glare. He couldn't see it, but he could almost feel her excitement.
With a swing of his torn navy blue cape, he ran into the shadows, the body tucked underneath his arms and the lantern safely lit under his cape. He couldn't get caught. He couldn't. "Mom's going to kill me, isn't she?" He said between puffs of breath. "She's going to kill me, chop me up into soup and feed me to Greg and his dad... o-or something."
He didn't notice himself stop. He rambled on and on. His train of thought only crashed when a firm "STOP" was heard. He gripped the body's head and snapped his towards the group that chased him.
"Aren't you fast for a rinkaku." The bird pointed out.
He held up the lantern. The beast trembled, watching with wide horrified eyes. Like all ghouls, the whites were black, but his pupils were red and his iris spun with a flurry of color. "L-look." His voice seemed different now that he was nervous, more childish. His kagune dissapeared. "If it's the meat you want take it, I-I'm sorry for whatever I did, just take it."
He threw the body and the puma pounced onto it. "Amethyst!" The bird squaked. They were distracted.
The beast fled into the darkness once again, his lantern hidden.
"Guys, stop." Garnet said, a short sigh following. "He's already gotten away. We'll have to wait until next time."
"Yeah Pearl, we'll get em later." Amethyst waved her hand dismissively.
Pearl pouted and grumbled.
"Where's Steven?" Pearl and Amethyst's eyes widened at Garnet's question.
"Wait!" The lion cub called, slowly catching up to the Beast. "Wait!" He called again.
The beast was followed out into the open, past an open street and into a house's yard. The beast slid an ajar window wide open and clumsily tripped inside. He shut the window and locked it, breathing heavily as he blew out the lantern.
"Mr.Beast?" The cub called. This must be his house. "I don't want to fight you. Can't we just talk?"
"G-go away. I have no idea what you're talking about." The beast clenched his teeth. God, he needed something, something he could gnaw on.
"Are you sure? I can help!"
Against his better judgement, the beast opened the window.
"Thanks!" The cub said, smiling beneath his mask. He flipped it up. "My name's Steven!"
The beast was quiet. "Wirt."
"Wirt." The cub- Steven, said. As if he were tasting the name for the first time. In a way, he actually was. "So, Wirt. What do you think's causing you to feed off of orphans or neglected children?" He asked, casually.
"It- It's symbolic." Wirt said plainly. There was a creak outside Wirt's bedroom door. He hid Steven behind his cape and covered his mouth. After a long moment he sighed and let the boy go. "Maybe we can talk a bit quieter?"
"Hm? Why?" Steven whispered.
"I can't let anyone know I was out." Wirt whispered in a hushed tone. He lifted his mask, his eyes bled blue and Steven's eyebrows lifted.
"You're not a monster. You're just a confused teenager, aren't you?" He asked, hushed. Wirt's eyes widened in alarm.
"Wirt?" Greg called sleepily, just outside the door. Swiftly, the teenager's cape and mask were shoved underneath the bed.
The door creeked open and while Greg rubbed his eye, Steven was shoved into the closet. "Y-yeah, Greg?"
"Hey brother o mine, you were ya talkin to?" Greg yawned again.
"N-nobody. Completely no one. Why are you awake?" Wirt attempted to change the subject.
Greg gasped, excited. "Woah! Can I talk to nobody too?" He asked, completely ignoring his brother's question.
Wirt sighed.