Chapter Text
“What about Nightmare on Elm Street?” asked Max from the living room. Harrison was busy trying to figure out what to eat after his long day of work. He poked around in the kitchen, examining his options and what would be the easiest meal right now.
“I was thinking more of a comedy.”
“We can watch Tucker and Dale Vs Evil again.”
He grabbed some cold slices of leftover pizza and threw them in the microwave, turning to the living room. Max was sprawled out on the couch, remote in hand flipping through one of their two streaming services. It was a typical Friday night, and Harrison was trying not to think of the long day he had tomorrow. With a birthday party at noon and then he had to close at the arcade he worked at. He wasn’t how Max afforded rent sometimes with their part-time job and school.
“Tucker and Dale is fine,” he responded finally. Max nodded, satisfied with the answer. This tradition of Friday night movie nights had started years ago when they were teenagers, and even with Harrison’s two jobs and Max’s college schedule they were somehow able to mostly keep it up. A loud beep! From the microwave told Harrison that his food was done, and he gingerly pulled out the paper plate, slamming the microwave shut. Nikki was gone for the holiday weekend, visiting Nerris at their university. Nerris had done under-grad near home, but had moved a state over for grad school. They were pursuing a MFA in screenwriting over in Washington. He was happy for his friends really, but felt widely accomplished next to them. Max was currently in their final year of studying photography, graduating in a few months with their BA. Harrison had dropped out of college after one year, already having taken two gap years between high school and then to work. David hadn’t tried to dissuade him, but he could tell that his former foster dad had been very happy when he had applied to the local community college. College was a good idea in theory, but Harrison had struggled to keep up with his classes and work at the same time, eventually deciding that higher education most likely wasn’t for him.
It wasn’t like he was struggling, he just…needed to save money. Between rent, the price of food, utilities, gas, and affording to transition, two jobs wasn’t enough. He was fortunate in that he had worked his way up through the birthday party magician ranks. Having real magic and a keen understanding of sleight of hand helped tremendously. It had been something he had started fresh out of highschool, and didn’t see himself stopping anytime soon. He enjoyed the work, even if the kids and parents could be a bit much at times. Preston had worked as a party princess for a time, which is how Harrison had gotten the magician gig in the first place. They had done a few parties as a team, (Harrison often having to help Preston with the more complicated costumes), but demands for Harrison’s act had skyrocketed within a year. Afterall, he had something most other people in the business didn’t have, magic. Magic that was innate to him, for better or for worse, and that had gotten exponentially more powerful over the years. Living with David and starting over in a way had given him an opportunity to truly hone and understand his powers. Suffice it to say, he made some decent money on the weekends. Oftentimes he would have multiple parties booked on the same day, hopping from party to party. It was tiring at times, but he loved performing for people. The looks of awe and delight he was able to conjure from the audience, how he was able to command a crowd- it always made his day.
He had gotten odd looks or questions from co-workers at the arcade when they found out he was a magician. Not that, it really mattered to him. He had spent his youth being bullied for his quirks and fascination with magic, told countlessly how he would never make money off of card tricks and sleight of hand that anyone can learn. But here he was now, one of the most requested in his area. He had gone independent a year after working with the entertainment party. David and some of his friends had been unsure about it at the time, but Harrison knew he had what it took to operate independently. Afterall, it wasn’t much different from the shows he would put on as a teenager. It just involved more scheduling, logistics, and paperwork now. Unfortunately, magic wouldn’t pay all his bills, so he had been stuck working part-time at an arcade for the past few years.
“What time you gotta leave tomorrow?” Max asked, flicking the movie on as Harrison fell onto the couch next to them, shooing Max’s legs away.
“Party is at noon, so the latest I need to be out of here is eleven since I gotta pick some things up.”
Max nodded, curling in on themself in the corner of the couch. The two sat in comfortable silence for a bit, watching the opening of the movie. They had both seen it a million times, it being one of those films they threw on when nothing else sounded good. The pizza, being two days old, was decent. It was more lukewarm than hot, since he was too tired and inpatient to heat it up properly. Harrison set his plate on the small coffee table and laid back on the couch. He was tired, having been up since six in the morning. He could see the same tired expression on Max’s face, knowing they had a good chunk of school work to catch up on this weekend.
“You got any free time this weekend?” asked Max finally. They were at the point in the movie where things started to pick up more. Harrison didn’t mind sitting in silence after days like this, Max was comfortable to be around more than most people after all these years. He thought for a moment, recounting his schedule in his head.
“I have…” he held up a hand, Max cocking an eyebrow. “I have Monday evening off, since I open that day and no parties are scheduled then.”
“Whoa, you got an evening off? I’m impressed.”
Sarcasm dripped from Max’s voice, heavy as to get their point across.
“I mean…I have next Thursday all free.”
He turned his attention back to the movie, ready for the blood and guts to start hitting the screen.
Max spoke casually, trying to not let the eagerness slip through.
“Theres a punk show Monday at nine, why don’t you come and loosen up for a bit?”
Harrison opened his mouth, then closed it. He had been to a few of the indie shows Max liked to frequent, all loud, in tiny, overcrowded venues where half the patrons smelled of an intoxicating substance. It wasn’t his ideal way to spend a night off.
“I think I’ll pass. It’s not really my scene” he shrugged.
“Well what about goth night next Friday?”
Harrison sighed, giving Max a pointed expression.
“I work a double next Friday.’
Max groaned, looking disappointed.
“Bro, you’re supposed to be my wingman. You can’t wingman me if you're not there.”
Harrison laughed at the concept of him wingmanning anyone, let alone his prickly, (lovingly) stubborn sibling.
“Get Nikki to go with you, she doesn't work Fridays ever.”
“Yeah but Nikki sucks at wingmanning, like worse than you do.”
The two siblings couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“Yeah well, that’s just a skill issue for her. She actually dates people.”
Max snickered.
“Yeah, well not all of us could be married to the grind, Hare.”
Harrison nearly grabbed a pillow to throw at them, reaching for one of the ugly print pillows on the couch, when his phone began to ring. Max gave him a shit eating grin, pausing the movie. Harrison set the pillow down and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He frowned at the caller ID, not recognizing it. Why would someone from someone from Idaho be calling him? He couldn’t remember the last time he had thought of his origin state. He gave Max a funny look, before picking up the phone.
“Hello?”
“Hello there! Is this Harrison Woode?”
“Oh, uh. Yeah this is he.”
Max gave him a weird look at the phrasing. He was anxious, a pit forming in his stomach. He was usually fine with phone calls, but something felt off about this one.
“Hi there, Mr. Woode. My name is Lawerence Misny Esq, I’m Mr. and Mrs. Johnson’s lawyer.”
His hands tighten around the phone, cold sweat trickling down his back at the sound of the last name he thought he had left behind in the past.
“What are you calling about?” he cut in, anxiety creeping into his voice.
A pause.
“Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are dead. I’m contacting you because you are listed on their wills.”
Harrison stared at nothing in particular with wide eyes, alarmed. Dead? His bio parents? He took a shake breath, trying to process the information. Max had sat up now, looking more alert. They mouthed something that Harrison didn’t quite catch.
“Sir? Mr Woode?”
The lawyer's tinny voice over the phone pulled him back a bit.
“Sorry, um. You said I’m in their wills?”
He wasn’t sure which part was more shocking, that or his parents death. He did the math in his head quietly, knowing they couldn’t have been much over forty by now.
“Yes, that is correct. You are being requested to come to the funeral, and deal with the estate settlement.”
Harrison glanced at the paused movie, briefly wondering what would happen if he just hung up the phone now and forgot about this whole thing. His parents, his abusive parents, who had never cared about him after what had happened with his brother- were dead. Somehow, just somehow, whether through an accident or some type of miracle, he was still in their wills. Despite the circumstances he had left them in. He could still recall the moment he had found out they had given him up- practically leaving him to fend for himself. He hadn’t meant to stay with David until he was eighteen, it had just happened. David was a good, honest man. But had been wholly unprepared to deal with a kid like Harrison. He had figured he would only be at David’s for a month or two, before he got shoved into the foster care system fully, or given over to a maybe less crazy distant relative. But as it turned out, no one had wanted him. He had overheard a phone call here or there, of David talking to his social worker. Always asking if anyone had offered to take him in, but in quiet enough tones that he didn’t think Harrison or anyone could overhear.
Aunts, grandparents, uncles, had all denied, or hadn’t gotten back on the inquiry. Not that, at the time, he had blamed any of them. But now, at twenty-two, Harrison had learned to respect himself more, no longer considering himself the demon his family had thought of him. Taking a slightly shaky breath, he spoke into the phone.
“Is there any other way we can do this? Could someone else deal with their estate?”
Another beat.
“Mrs. Johnson’s will states that all beneficiaries must attend the funeral to receive their inheritance."
Fuck.
Fuck his parents and whatever bullshit they put in their wills.
“Due to my understanding as their only living next of kin, you are being left their property and half of their assets.”
Fuck. Well now he really needed to go. If there was one thing Harrison needed right now, it was money. And the house…his childhood home…
He shook his head violently, trying not to think about that. He could sell the house, use the earnings to help with his surgery costs…
“When's the service?”
The lawyer seemed a bit less edgy now, responding quickly.
“Sunday morning at eleven.”
Harrison turned to Max finally, gearing turning in his head. Max’s eyebrows were scrunched in confusion, hands scrolling on their phone. The timing wasn’t ideal…but he could make it work. Afterall, he had some coworkers who owned him for the amount of times he’d covered their shifts.
“Okay. Uh, thank you. So…I’ll start making the arrangements. We’ll be in contact?”
“Yes. The executor will be there Sunday to work out the details. Have a nice rest of your evening, sir.”
There was a click as the lawyer hung up.
Harrison sat in silence for a moment, phone still to his ear, before breaking out of his stupor. He slid the phone into his pocket, getting to his feet.
“My parents are dead.”
He began to pace back and forth, waiting for Max’s reaction.
“I- what the fuck?”
The movie was forgotten about, Harrison staring at the dark blue scuffed up carpet as he traipsed from one side to the next, over and over.
“That was their lawyer, apparently I’ve been left a good chunk of money, and the house-”
“Holy shit! That’s awesome!” Max cried, getting to their feet. “So when do you get the money?”
Harrison stopped in front of the tv, staring at Max, their face lit up with excitement.
“After the funeral service.”
Max frowned for a second, opened their mouth and was cut off by Harrison.
“My mother stated in her will I cannot get my inheritance until after I attend the funeral.”
The two stood in the living room, both unsure of what to say or do.
Max gawked at their brother’s words.
“You have to attend your shitty parents funeral?” it was said in almost a growl, the increasing anger evident in their eyes.
“Tell me you’re joking.”
Harrison shook his head, grimacing at what he was about to ask.
“The service is Sunday and-”
“Hold on-” it was Max’s turn to interject. “How much money are we talking? Because no offense, Hare. I know we’re both struggling, but uh- do you want to put yourself through that?”
Harrison considered what Max was saying for a moment. But he knew that his parents had a good amount of money- and that their house was definitely worth something.
“It’s just a funeral. I could make the whole trip last less than two days I’m sure.”
Max rolled their eyes, placing hands on their hips.
“That’s how horror movies start, idiot. You are not going alone.”
Max moved away from the couch, typing quickly on their phone.
“What are you doing?” asked Harrison, slowly following.
“Telling Nikki we’re going out of town for a few days and to call the cops if we don’t come back.”
Harrison paused.
“You don’t like or trust the police-”
Max turned to him, stopping.
“I also don’t like or trust your creepy religious family.”
“Fair point.”
His younger sibling went into their room and came back out with their laptop.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend, or whatever” they muttered. Soon they were back on the couch, hunched over Max’s laptop looking at hotels.
“God! Why did you have to grow up in the middle of fucking nowhere?”
“Theres a Red Roof twenty minutes from the funeral home.”
Max seemed satisfied by that, stating that putting some distance between the two and the point of action was probably for the best. The trip would take them nearly ten hours total to Harrison’s hometown of Challis, Idaho. They began looking at road maps, plotting out their route. Both Harrison and Max both had pretty decent cars, Max’s was older, having got their license first. Harrison’s was a bit bigger since he had invested in the space for his magic act. He drove a dark blue Toyota Camry, (his first car had been an old Mitsubishi that David had driven in high school). It was agreed they would split the drive up, switching out every few hours. Harrison hadn’t done a drive longer than a few hours in a while, having no reason to for the most part.
“What about work?” He questioned his sibling.
“I don’t work this weekend, they're cutting back hours and I’m job hunting anyway.” Then they asked Harrison the same thing. What he was going to do about the parties that had been booked out in advance and his shifts at the arcade.
“Pikeman owes me after I covered three shifts for him back to back.”
The rest of the night was spent making arrangements for the trip. They got a hotel booked, the cheap Red Roof Inn they had been looking at. Harrison called up Pikeman, knowing he wasn’t scheduled this weekend, and got him to cover his shift. The hardest part was going to be calling his clients for the party- which he would have to do in the morning since it was nearing nine o'clock now. He grabbed his car keys from the nightstand in his room, and trudged out to his car. He wanted to empty the drunk and backseat now, so they could just get up and leave in the morning. Max was currently on the phone with David, letting him know what was going on. He could only imagine how that conversation was going, knowing how overreactive their parental figure was.
The complex was a few minutes from campus, with the complex itself being quiet, but Harrison could hear shouts and noise coming from around the area. Friday nights in a college town were interesting as an outsider. His work had him leave the apartment early and return late at night if he was working at the arcade. Not that he minded much. He would often get glimpses of college students going to and from the bars on his way home. Nikki, one of his best friends and roommate, was the most sociable one in their little trio. She would often go out on Friday nights every few weeks, trying to convince Max and or Harrison to go with her. She was also a bit of a drinker, Harrison having had to pick her up from a bar, or a girls dorm or apartment a few times (the dorm situation had been incredibly awkward, and was the reason Nikki didn’t go back to girls dorms anymore).
The trunk of the car was fairly stuffed, his trunk of magic props threatening to pop out once he opened the lid to get it out. He grabbed a handle and began hauling it out of the car. Theoretically he could teleport it into the apartment, but considering it was part of his livelihood, he didn’t want to risk losing it to some void. Max came down to help him, by the time he had gotten it out of the car and was in the process of getting it into the building. His sibling grabbed the handle on the other side and motioned for Harrison to begin walking backwards towards the door they had come out of. It was slow going getting the trunk inside and up the elevator to the second floor, but it had worked. Max was sweating by the end of it, less muscle on their arms than there had used to be before they had started on estrogen. The two set the trunk down by the couch, Harrison heading back out to get the rest of his stuff out of the backseat.
The trunk of the car was mainly empty now, just the spare tire and funnel David insisted both Max and Harrison keep in their respective cars occupied the space. The backseat was not exactly messy, but it was more than Harrison wanted in his car for crossing state lines. He pulled out the pair of clothes he kept in his car, some random props, a spare tophat, and the box of ziplock bags he kept forgetting to take inside. He left the first aid kit and the pack of water bottles he always kept there for emergencies. It wasn’t until he had locked the car and was heading back up to the apartment that it hit him. He was really going back to his hometown…to the place where his nightmares often came from.
The last time he had seen his parents was the day he had been shipped off for his second summer at Camp Campbell. He had been happy to have been going back to camp, even if he understood more why his parents were sending him to a summer camp in a neighboring state. They had been so desperate to get rid of him, not even ensuring that the camp he was being sent to was legal in the slightest. He didn’t bother with the elevator, storming through the door to the stairwell. What had been the last words he had exchanged with them? Had they even told them they loved him before that second summer? Waves of thoughts that Harrison refused to entertain most days hit him, sending him stumbling to open the door to the apartment. That familiar prick of fire on his skin enveloped him, the one that he made his anxiety known and hard to ignore. He slammed the door behind him, thinking for a moment it could block out everything in his mind. Max was nowhere to be seen, most likely having retreated to their room.
Harrison tried to get his anxiety under control, gloved hands grabbing at the wall. His heart felt like it was going a million miles per hour, threatening to leap right out of his chest. He tried doing the breathing technique he had been taught by Max when he was twelve, the first time he had had a panic attack at camp. His mind had other ideas, threatening to drown him in memories. Parents Day his first year, feeling more isolated than ever from the other kids. Watching as most of the others had a parent or guardian they could talk to and play with. He had followed his parents around all day, hoping for something, anything, since they were in public. But it was the same as usual, being shunned for things he couldn’t control. It was the sight of Neriss’s family together that had threatened tears to spill from his eyes. How both their parents loved them and supported their hobbies…noticing David and Gwen sneak off with Max…rope burns, cold water, struggling to breath. Hands around his small torso-
There were suddenly warm hands on him, startling Harrison back to the present. Max stood looking up at him, eyes darting around assessing the situation. He was still with his back pressed against the front door. Mad had put their hands on his shoulders, clearly trying to ground him back to reality.
“You’re okay, Harrison. No one is going to hurt you, you’re safe.”
It was in that uncharacteristically gentle tone Max rarely used. The first time he had heard it, he had been confused why Max was acting so weird. They coached him on getting his breathing regulated again, before pulling their hands away.
“Maybe this trip is a bad idea,” they said hesitantly. That nervous look that Max only got when things were really bad. It always made him more nervous, because if Max- one of the toughest people he knew was worried- then he was also worried. Nonetheless, Harrison shook his head, pulling himself away from the door.
“No, no. It’s…it’s fine. It’ll be a quick two day thing, we barely have to interact with anyone. And besides, we’ll be together the whole time right?”
Max’s expression was unreadable, but they nodded slowly.
“And I will fight your creepy family members if they try anything.”
There was that confidence Max had, the type that made Harrison feel like everything will work out in the end.
“Yeah…yeah…”