INTRO: Mirai is at another bus stop, waiting for a transfer.
MIRAI:
Okay, I actually have to transfer to another bus now, so I can finally speak a little more, now that we’re outside. Terry was pretty terrifying! But I guess if you grow up around death your viewpoint must be very different. But still! Having zombies as friends doesn’t really seem all that… healthy.
I wonder if that explains Sam as well… He seemed like he was only interested in being friends with creatures. What an interesting family. I couldn’t find much else on his social media. But he did go to the same college as Jun-nii so that must be when they met.
Also, I know I already talked about this, but I still can’t stop staring at that person with the fox ears. I guess they’re also going to the middle of nowhere like me. Oh… I think they have a leaf stuck in their hair. Should I go up and tell them? Or would that make things awkward…
SCENE STARTS: (“Proserpina Bops” plays as Alina enters the cafe, greeting Drew, Jun, and Dog.)
ALINA:
Alrighty gang, we need to really sit down and plan what on earth we are going to do now.
JUN:
Do you need to record our planning as well?
ALINA:
Yes! I think it’d be great to let Sam listen to all this after we fix everything.
DOG:
Anyways, what are we going to do about the next steps? Now that we have to watch out for night creatures and Terry.
DREW:
I… have a thought. But you’re not going to like it.
ALINA:
Oh boy.
DREW:
Maybe, it’d be best to take a break from the park. It seems like we’re really unwelcome there. How about we pivot to finding Sam in town? I think I’d rather deal with thousands of people instead of thousands of creatures.
ALINA:
Our situation isn’t that bad!
DREW:Name one creature or demigod that has been happy to see us Alina.
ALINA:
Oh come on, that’s not fair!
DOG:
How about we go to a more private location to talk?
NEXT SCENE: (The gang leave the cafe and go to Alina’s house to regroup.)
ALINA:
Okay, welcome back to my humble abode.
JUN:
Before we start… I also have something to say.
ALINA:
Oh Jun, please don’t tell me you agree with Drew on this.
JUN:
No, I do still want to go to the park.
ALINA:
Oh thank god, okay, at least someone’s on my side.
JUN:
But… it’s kinda you I have a problem with Alina. You need to start taking our concerns as seriously as you do yours.
ALINA:
Wha— I do!
JUN:
I told you last time that I didn’t feel safe in the park and you ignored me and kept asking about— about what kind of monsters could eat us! Like that is a conversation to have!
ALINA:
I wasn’t ignoring you! I just wanted to know the full story so I would know I wouldn’t regret anything.
JUN:
The full story is that we would have died! Regardless of what creature is out there. We barely lasted at sunset the first time Alina, how did you honestly expect us to last until dawn?
ALINA:
I’m sure we could have figured something out!
JUN:
Oh, like are you gonna lie behind Sam’s back again and keep that going?
ALINA:
Whoa, where is all this anger coming from? You practically begged me to go to the park that day.
JUN:
That was when I thought the park was cool, not a death trap! If you want us to help you out, you gotta get off your high horse and actually listen to us.
ALINA:
Oh— how dare you!
DREW:
Ok guys, guys! Let’s just calm down here. Alina, don’t look at me like that, I said I wanted to take a break so we could all be a little less stressed out, and now I see that I’m right. So how about we all just talk about this like adults?
SOUND: (Silence, no one knows how to start.)
DOG:
Alina, I have to agree, I have the most experience with the park, you really need to listen to me if I don’t think something is safe—
ALINA:
Oh, so now everyone is ganging up on me.
SOUND: (A rooster cockadoodledoos.)
DREW:
What. Was that… a rooster?
JUN:
You own a chicken Alina?
ALINA:
Of course not! My neighbors would murder me if I did.
DOG:
Alina… I think there is a chicken in your apartment… look.
SOUND: (The clucking sound continues as the crew finally sees the creature.)
ALINA:
That’s not mine.
JUN:
How does a chicken just show up in an apartment in New Jersey?
DREW:
Uh is it just me or— yup, yup. Okay its tail is on fire.
DOG:
Oh, well now it all makes sense.
ALINA:
Is it a creature? How?
DOG:
If my instincts are correct, it must be the household spirit, Aitvaras.
ALINA:
There are household spirits?
DREW:
The only household spirits I know are little people, you know, like the brownies…
JUN:
Brownies are little people, but I’ve eaten so many!
DREW:
Not the dessert, they just happen to have the same name…
ALINA:
Why is it getting closer?
DOG:
Can we lock it in a room somewhere?
DREW:
Oh, what about the bathroom?
ALINA:
And have it destroy something? I only have one bathroom!
JUN:
Yeah, we’d be doomed if we have to pee.
ALINA:
Can’t we just chase it out of the apartment?
DOG:
Oh absolutely not! That is the one thing we can not do!
ALINA:
Okay, well seeing as this is a studio apartment, we don’t really have any options here!
DREW:
Let’s just keep an eye on it for now until we know more about it, Dog whatcha got?
MUSIC: (“Chicken Wiggle” plays.)
DOG:
So there are both good and bad household spirits. The ones that Drew mentioned are good household spirits. I’m sure you’ve heard all stories like the shoemaker and his nightly elf guests. It’s basically that. They help you with some chores, you reward them with little gifts. But the Aitvaras… they’re what you might call a loose cannon.
ALINA:
Please tell me it’s not going to burn my apartment down…
DOG:
Not unless it dies.
JUN:
There goes my plan to make fried chicken.
DOG:
Aitvaras is a Lithuanian creature. It’s got a little bit of a robin hood complex. You know, steal from the rich and give to the poor.
ALINA:
Well, that explains why it’s at my sad little place.
DOG:
But it typically steals from everyone, like your neighbors…
ALINA:
Oh oh okay, no. Oh, it needs to go. I am not about to get evicted because this thieving chicken just showed up at my place.
DOG:
I’m telling you, Alina, you can’t.
DREW:
Okay, I thought household spirits were supposed to be things that like, protect or care for your house. Like a local god you pay tribute to. Why is a chicken part of this category?
DOG:
Well, it does kinda take care of you in a way… just don’t ask where it gets it’s presents from!
JUN:
Okay, you keep saying not to take it outside, what happens exactly if we do?
DOG:
It um… well it does this funny little thing where it turns into a dragon…
ALINA:
Uhh okay… what on earth are we going to do? Please don’t leave me like this…
DOG:
Hmm I think it’s best to get JD. They can handle it.
DREW:
Great, Dog and I will go get this person. Alina, you and Jun can watch over the flaming chicken.
ALINA:
Drew! Don’t think I don’t see what you’re doing here…
DREW:
Alina, I know you. Your head is always in the clouds and yet also running 50 miles an hour. Just talk. You know you’ve been in the wrong but you can fix those errors now. Dog, let’s go.
SOUND: (Drew and Dog leave. There’s some silence. The Aitvaras continues to cluck.)
ALINA:
I’m sorry for not listening to you. I won’t do it again.JUN:Alina, you’re like, crazy driven and so am I. But sometimes… sometimes I feel like you’re going to leave us all behind.
ALINA:
I won’t! I-I just want all the answers. I-I hate not knowing. About Sam or about the park.
JUN:
And listen, I get that. But when you disregard other people, that really sucks, you know? That’s definitely what Sam is feeling right now too.
ALINA:
I know, and that’s why I was so hellbent on meeting Sam again. I considered him a friend and I hurt him a lot. Even if he doesn’t forgive me, there’s a selfish part of me that wants to see him again. But then I guess I ended up dragging you all into my mess.
JUN:
As long as you remember to be there for us Alina, we’ll always be there for you. But regarding Sam, a relationship built on lies isn’t a relationship to begin with. You’re going to have to work extra hard to earn his trust again. My brother really hurt me when he told me he didn’t want to go to space. I know it just sounds silly to a lot of people, but I really thought it was both of our dreams. I guess he just played along since we were family… but since then we’ve haven’t really talked.
ALINA:
Jun, I’m sorry you had to go through all that. And, with how I treated you. I’ll do better. We won’t do anything unless the team is in agreement. I don’t want anyone to look at me the way Sam did the last time we saw him ever again.
JUN:
Good. Because I want to go on this adventure with you, Alina. But as a team and preferably with no flaming chicken involved.
ALINA:
Well now that we’re officially a team, you have to stay with me forever until this guy leaves.
OUTRO: (They laugh as we return back to Mirai. “Proserpina Bop” plays as Mirai is back on the bus.)
MIRAI:
I guess that’s one way to fix a hurting relationship. Junpei really needs more friends. He talks like mostly about going to outer space all the time. It’s kinda hard for him to connect with anybody when all he talks about is leaving.
And oh my gosh, a flaming chicken of all things!? Sam did mention before that creatures had the right to go wherever they want to go. And Dog said that they might be more influenced than other people thanks to the park. Can you imagine seeing a creature in broad daylight? That seems so surreal… This story is making me really paranoid over Fox Ears right now…
Care and Feeding of Werewolves
HAZEL: Hi, my name is Hazel Thornton and I’m just going to cut to the chase. Here in the Pacific Northwest people in the paranormal community going missing.
ANNOUNCER: The witch, Rosemary Thornton
FLASHBACK: (“Hazel, I’m so sorry, you need to get down here. Nana Rosemary’s missing.”
ANNOUNCER: The werewolf, Owen Grimsbane.
FLASHBACK: (”a long-standing werewolf client no-showed on an appointment, one of my first since I took over my grandmother’s apothecary a few days ago” ).
HAZEL: The only correlations are the time frame and region, there’s nothing in their histories or backgrounds to tie them together. In fact, the disparity of the missing is the only connection.
ANNOUNCER: Thoroven Rockland. Addison Clarke. Melek Adziel. Whinny Farrunning, Grandtree Haymaker, Constantine Albarn, James Sullivan, Kraphne Abstre…
FLASHBACK: (“if this was a movie, I’d be a badass detective with a hot partner instead of a not-quite-a-real-doctor-yet whose nights consist of cuddling up with textbooks.” “Hey, Hazel, I’m sorry to miss Christmas Eve, but I gotta go take out a rawhead factory with Lummy real quick!A fourteen-year-old half-orc with a redneck role-model whose idea of bonding includes seven different ways to defend yourself from chupacabras?”
HAZEL: I need to find my grandmother, Rosemary Thornton, and the rest of the missing. If you hear anything, contact us at feedingwerewolves@gmail.com, find us on Twitter at CareWerewolves, or Care and Feeding of Werewolves on Facebook or Tumblr. More details about the missing will be posted there. Updates will be broadcast every two weeks on Apple Podcasts, Podbean, Podcast Addict, Spotify, and Stitcher. Until then, please stay safe.
Residents of Proserpina Park 