driving: (pic#13327114)
Billy Hargrove ([personal profile] driving) wrote in [community profile] deerington2019-10-02 11:47 am
18

they say the devil will make work of idle hands; (OPEN)

Who: Billy Hargrove (& the mind-flayer) [personal profile] driving + open and closed prompts
What: Billy comes back from home and a lot has changed.
When: Early October.
Where: The ocean surrounding Deerington in October + all around.

Content Warnings: Possession, body horror, discussion of death and trauma likely.


[ 1 - the return - ota ]

[ Throughout early October, Billy can be found in a panic, his breathing fast and heavy. He isn’t in good shape: he’s paler than normal and in some lights his skin has an almost gray undertone, and he’s covered in sweat like he’s sick.

Sometimes he’s crying, despite his efforts not to. Sometimes he’s grabbing his head and yelling out things like ‘stop, stop’ and ‘leave me alone’ (to no one, it seems). Sometimes, he gets desperate enough that he might ask for help, whether he knows who you are or not. ]


[ 2 - the mind flayer - ota ]

[ This wasn’t right, the mind-flayer thought. Why was it here? Where did the rest of it go? It had been separated from its comrades before but was always at least able to contact the rest of the hive-mind, now when it tried to reach out it found nothing but a great empty void.

It was alone. It wasn’t supposed to be alone.

At least this place was cold and dark - a small mercy, but mercy nonetheless. It was weaker here but when its fool host isolated himself for long enough it could win the constant internal battle for control of his body.

Billy - or rather, the mind-flayer - can be found standing waist-deep in the ice cold water, unnaturally still and staring up at the starless sky. ]


[ ooc note: Billy’s returning from a major canon update and is going to be a bit different than he was before. See my canon update details for some information on what’s changed and the physical and mental effects he’s currently going through.

Prompt #1 is for interaction with Billy, prompt #2 is if you want the mind-flayer. If you want a personalized starter you can reach me at [plurk.com profile] dandymott or #Velocett#7191 on Discord.]
laminae: (freeze)

[personal profile] laminae 2019-10-02 09:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[Those aren't the best texts to receive in Deerington, especially not with the changes that have recently come over the town. Fern is quick to respond, automatically assuming whatever 'something' is, it's really, really serious.]

ok
be right over


[A wiser person would ask for details first, but he has his swords and the kind of bullheadedness that comes with a teenager who runs straight into danger, so he simply heads out and over to Billy's place. When he approaches he forms a grass sword and, upon noticing the door is already ajar, pushes it open with his foot instead of busting in like a maniac.

Not that it matters. When he steps inside he finds there aren't any monsters, just Billy.

Just... Billy. Looking real messed up.]


Uhhh.

[He's extremely eloquent when it comes to eldritch body horror.]

You don't look so good.
laminae: (huh?)

[personal profile] laminae 2019-10-02 10:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[Fern lowers his sword cautiously, closing the door behind himself before heading into the living room.]

What, seriously? That wasn't a hallucination?

[That's what he had been hoping for, because that thing was monstrous.]

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sinnabon: (jack285)

[personal profile] sinnabon 2019-10-03 08:30 pm (UTC)(link)
[ the second jack hears billy's voice echoing inside his head, he's already focusing in on him, searching out his location and summoning up his powers to move himself to him. billy goes on, desperate sounding, and hold me down, okay? it doesn't bode well, and there's dread creeping through jack as he appears with a gust of wind in billy's room.

immediately, his hands go to billy's arms, pinning him down to the closest surface without question, though his eyes widen when he spots the black veins spidering through his body underneath his skin. ]


I'm here.

[ jack tells him in a quick, harsh murmur, one of his hands on billy's cheek, feeling the temperature of his skin, looking for the focus in his eyes. at no point does the pressure he has on billy's arms or shoulders let up, keeping him pinned there, in case billy's having a Deerington Moment. ]

Hey, Billy, I'm here, it'll be okay. [ jack repeats, ] Talk to me. What happened to you?

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deadboywalking: ([:(] different)

[personal profile] deadboywalking 2019-10-03 02:16 am (UTC)(link)
[will did not, in fact, go home at the same time. he didn't know what happened, and he didn't know that billy was the new host. he didn't know that the mind flayer was so consumed with hatred, that it had gone farther than it did before, tired of playing docile and harmless inside will's comparably weaker frame.

but he knew it was back.

billy hasn't been at steve's house in a while (and will doesn't care, he doesn't, he doesn't feel a faint sense of loss at that empty chair at the table), but the second he bursts free from the cocoon, even though will isn't there, he knows. he feels it like a creeping, crawling thing on the back of his neck, like icy fingers down his spine.

he almost isn't surprised to see the message. his simple reply belies the fact that his stomach feels like it's in knots and he's shivering all over.
]

where are you?

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acidwashjeans: (and the tears)

[personal profile] acidwashjeans 2019-10-03 05:55 am (UTC)(link)
[ For three days Steve's been out of his mind with worry. Hearing from people that the orange cocoon meant Billy was back home and he'd be back from some point in the future isn't any comfort. Spending all his time in his room complaining to Billy about literally everything, knowing that Billy can't hear him, doesn't help either.

He's in the kitchen unloading a huge stack of groceries when Billy stomps down the stairs, finally awake. And then leaves. There's a lot of yelling, mostly from Steve. Billy looks like shit and won't say what happened and by the time he's in his car Steve's scared and angry enough that he's yelling fuck you too, Hargrove at the Camaro, like that'll do anything to help.

And Billy doesn't come back.

A day passes. Steve forces himself not to call or text. What had he thought was happening? They'd both been really messed up because of the team event, clearly. Now it's over, Billy's back to normal. Asshole normal. He stonewalls the kids and does a bunch of laundry because his entire room smells like Billy right now.

He can't help but wonder what's happened back home. Does Steve turn into an asshole? Is he the reason Billy's acting like this? Maybe going home made him forget everything that had happened here, so he was regular old asshole Hargrove again.

It sucks to think it, and Steve isn't brave enough to examine why.


He and the kids eat a ton because they're starving, and so he goes back to the store again the next day. He doesn't get far down the road before he realises the car parked badly on the sidewalk is a familiar blue Camaro. And there's a familiar blond sitting next to it.

Steve wants to keep driving. Leave the asshole here and make Billy be the one who decides if he wants to ever talk to Steve again.

But he stops in the middle of the road and gets out, staring across the roof of his car. ]
You finally worried about getting a sunburn. [ His tone is petulant, pissed off. Worried. ]

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possessum: (𝟎𝟏𝟏)

the return

[personal profile] possessum 2019-10-04 04:54 pm (UTC)(link)
[ It hasn't been long, but even just a few weeks have seen some physical improvement in Peter. The bandage is finally gone from his nose, even if it's still a little swollen around the edges; the cuts across his face have healed. There's still a weighty layer of dark draped over him, eyebags brown and tired, and the way he moves is often like someone who hurts on the inside. He keeps an arm wrapped around his stomach as though it aches from injuries running deep.

He's walking through some neighbourhood, when another young man all but runs into him, panicked and teary and sick looking.

Peter freezes, almost screams. But then he just stares.

It's like looking at a mirror image of himself not too long ago. It shocks him to the core, ice seeping through his gut.

Then he realises he recognises the boy. His memories are fuzzy and not entirely his own, but he remembers enough. The worst part was his mean smile, like some hungry animal toying with its prey before it'll pounce on it. ]


You— [ He takes a step back to put some distance between them, wide-eyed. Peter's cautious, visibly afraid of him, as though the boy's going to reach out and try to hurt him again. He can't help releasing a hurried apology, wanting to avoid confrontation. ] I'm sorry. Didn't mean to bump into you.

[ But through the fear is an ache. What the fuck... happened..? It hurts to look at him. ]
possessum: (𝟎𝟒𝟓)

[personal profile] possessum 2019-10-05 08:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[ It's like he's faced with a completely different person. Someone wounded, emotionally as much as physically.

Peter stares at that inky trail slipping down the other boy's chin. It takes him a moment to realise it's blood, maybe. Something like blood. But he doesn't pull back, doesn't seem disgusted, only wide-eyed. ]


You're— sick. [ It seems like an enormous understatement. But he remembers it was said to him, when he first arrived here very much like this, dripping and bleeding and wrong. ] You need a doctor.

[ Unbeknownst to him, the ancient thing inside of him has a sense of something dark within the blond, as well. It doesn't understand, and that makes it even more afraid of Billy than it already was. But its eyes are open, watching. ]

You need a doctor. [ He says it again, feeling his heart beating in his throat. ]

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endlessflask: (107)

following their network convo, as discussed

[personal profile] endlessflask 2019-10-06 05:46 am (UTC)(link)
[ The conversation on the network had left Eliot with all sorts of bad vibes. A normal person would probably ignore them, or ask someone to maybe come with them, but Eliot's always been a little impulsive. He doesn't want to bother Quentin or anyone else, and Steve seems to be pretty anti-Billy right now, so Eliot's on his own. He probably wouldn't even be bothering if he and Billy hadn't made some sort of progress with each other only a few weeks ago. Eliot sees a lot of himself in the younger man and his dad instincts are kicking in. Or maybe big brother instincts, given there's only a decade between them.

Either way, Eliot's mostly sure Billy's tripping on something. It's easier to think that than to let the warning of possible monster possessions cloud his judgment. And - he gets it. He just went home too and it was shit and he didn't want to tell anyone, either. There's a lot that could be happening. It doesn't have to be sinsister.

At least, that's what Eliot's telling himself.

He has Billy's address and he's slow going getting there. The thestral cabs are a little too weird for Eliot to want to use one, and maybe in the time it takes, Billy might be a little less on edge. Hopefully he's not any worse.

Eliot knocks on the door, already frowning.
]

Billy - are you home?
endlessflask: (009)

[personal profile] endlessflask 2019-10-06 05:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He smiles, but it's not really anything more than a pleasantry. It doesn't cut away his concern, but he is glad to see Billy at least moving around. Functioning. Still, there's something off. Billy's being too pleasant, Eliot thinks. Which he gets, he does. He's hid plenty of shit from people in his life. ]

Is there a reason you're so stressed out? Steve said you bolted from his place for no reason.

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almightythirst: (Light Up)

the return

[personal profile] almightythirst 2019-10-11 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
[ Jesse should know better than to follow a spooky sound to its source in Deerington. It's more likely than not that it'll lead to trouble. Still, he approaches, because there's a chance--no matter how slight--that this crying and pleading could be coming from an actual person in need.

Or maybe not. Maybe it's some manner of monster or spirit or god-knows-what trying to lure in a soft-hearted victim. All the more reason to check it out then, to keep someone else from walking into a trap.

He turns the corner cautiously, frowning as he squints through the dark. Far as he can tell, it's human. Not in the best shape, but human, or human-like. A hand stays at his hip though, just in case. The last time he'd dealt with someone in a similar state of mind, he'd gotten shot, so. Better safe than sorry.

"You need some help there, partner?" He keeps a safe distance, caught between concern and caution.
almightythirst: (Huh)

[personal profile] almightythirst 2019-10-14 01:43 am (UTC)(link)
[ Okay, so maybe this still could be some kind of really clever monster. Shapeshifter or something. But Jesse feels in his gut that this is legit, and well… if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck… then he’s probably looking at a Sleeper. And thankfully for Billy, Jesse is an unapologetically heavy smoker. ]

Got a lighter, hold on now—

[ There’s a second or two of fumbling in his pocket, but he finds the lighter quick enough and flicks it on. He doesn’t move closer though. Not until he’s sure the help he’s providing outweighs the risk to himself. ]

You need more than that?

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acidwashjeans: (For all of the bruises I've caused)

YES HELLO i am here for another thread CW sadness, talk of child death, steve being Upset and Not Ok

[personal profile] acidwashjeans 2019-10-14 03:57 am (UTC)(link)
[ It's past midnight when Steve makes it up the creaky stairs to his own room.

He's left Mike on the couch with the dog, finally asleep. Wherever Jonathan is, Steve doesn't care because he feels like there's nothing left in him to care. All day he's been going and going and going on so much energy and now there's nothing left.

He stops at the top of the stairs, looks at Billy's door; thinks about knocking and asking if he's up. He could do with talking to someone who isn't going to yell at him about Will Byers.

But that's too much effort. If Billy's asleep or says he's just being an idiot... that'd be one thing too many today. Steve's not supposed to care what others think about him, that what Chloe had said. But, even if he tries to deny it, he cares way too much what Billy thinks of him now.

So he turns to his own room, ready to just lie on his bed until he hears Mike wake up screaming in the night. ]
acidwashjeans: (and the tears)

[personal profile] acidwashjeans 2019-10-14 04:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ Steve hears the door open and his shoulders tense, back still to Billy and ready for-- something terrible like the rest of today has been.

But it's not.

He lets out the breath he's holding, brings his hands up to his face as his shoulders slump.]
Yeah. Yeah, okay. [ He turns to level the Most Tired Look at Billy. ]

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