#sally hidden star

[nobone-blun]

Julie is innocent and terrifying at the same time, yes she is scary 😔

---

Julie es inocente y aterradora a la vez, si da miedo 😔

[finalskies]

A couple of older generation furry icons check in with each other

[syncrovoid-presents]

DISCOVERIES OF THE NEW WELCOME HOME UPDATE (SPOILERS?)

NOTE: this is a first cursory glance without getting into things! Also, every video mentioned has a transcript below the video (ctrl+a) to highlight it.

First off the first page! If you zoom out on the left and right there are two eyes watching you @:)

WELCOME

The red drawn house is clickable and leads you to a welcoming audio (clownillustrations.com/i)

There is an out of place letter Y in the Serendipitous Salutations.

In Wally's character description if you click on his canvas itll bring you to a page with another audio file. This one is more direct, and silly! (Clownillustrations.com/will)

NEIGHBOURHOOD

The so-below has a spiral that when clicked brings you to a glitching audio file. The record acts weird and the audio is a series of squeaks and clicks. Most likely Morse code (from Home )!! (Clownillustrations.com/neighbor)

The so-below graphic has been updated to a black void with a white eye and spiral (image below)

If you click the beetle on the bottom right you get another hidden page. This one is a video and a message (looks to be a transcript). It is from Poppy with Frank talking about her recipe. It's pretty sweet haha. Glitches out at the end with Wally @:) (I think there is a freeze frame? The video cannot be replayed nor paused) (Clownillustration.com/9-14-fp)

There is another bug with Eddie that brings you to a video between Eddie and Frank. Glitches out when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/8-14-ef)

There is an out of place X letter.

Fun thing! If you select all on the page home doesnt get blued-out.

The O is out of place

ABOUT US

The blue drawn heart is clickable. It brings you to another audio file. Wally is being so silly @:) (clownillustration.com/a)

Overlapped text: "When I unwrapped the first letter, I felt it. I heard it. Open. Open. Open. I want it out. I'm going to get it out."

The wally darling is my favourite line js new I think? Wally is being mentioned more overall.

In the bottom right another bug will appear that leads you to another hidden page. This is a video where Sally and Julie are talking, and "Williford" Wally is mentioned at the end (clownillustration.com/10-14-js)

The yellow drawn star is another link to audio. This one is very helpful @:) (clownillustration.com/i-2)

STICKERS

Top right there is a spider that brings you to a video where Julie and Barnaby are chatting. Glitches out again at the end when Wally is mentioned. (There is an mention during the conversation that he's there, I think that's different than the rest?) (clownillustration.com/11-14-jb)

Theres a few letters that look odd in the first part (in order of appearance): K P I (first one could be C, second could be S, third could be T. Might be in pairs of CK, SP, TI)

I managed to get a small blue orb thing in the top left but clicking did nothing. It is gone and couldn't be selected so that might have been just a my-laptop glitch. Weird though!

None of the stickers or banners are clickable (havent checked names)

There is a Caterpillar on the top right with another video. This one is between Howdy and Barnaby. Also glitches when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/12-14-hb)

NEWS

E is out of place

The guestbook has officially been closed! Unless you submitted something a while back you cannot submit anything anymore. Understandable but unfortunate. There is a message to the guest book writers after the most recent update. Please respect boundaries @:)

There is a beetle on the top right that leads to another video between Edie and Howdy. Howdy calls Edie Ed and Julie Jewels @:P. Also glitches when Wally is mentioned (clownillustration.com/13-14-he)

GUESTBOOK

The drawn hello is clickable and leads to another audio. Theres some connectivity issues @:P (clownillustration.com/find)

I am too eepy to go through the rest of the guestbook but there is lots of new messages and images!

There is a little bug hiding in the top right that has another video link. This is a talk between Poppy and Sally. Wally is about @:) (clownillustration.com/2-14-sp)

EXHIBITION

Specifies that Welcome Home started airing on October 11th 1969 until sometime in 1974 (4 to 5 years).

I didnt go through to test the brightness and read the text for all of the images of the gallery. There are multiples with text!

The house drawing on the bottom left is clickable and leads to more audio. It's very friendly @:) (clownillustration.com/understand)

There is a bug on the left halfway down with another video. This is a talk between Howdy and Poppy. Wally is about @:) Glitches when Wally is mentioned (clownillustration.com/1-14-ph)

MEDIA

Theres a lot more on this page that I will go through later!

MERCHANDISE

You need to wait for the butterfly to appear at the Currently Unknown Records subtitle. Leads to another video where Frank and Julie were talking back and forth. It's very Silly @:P. Glitches when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/6-14-jf)

OTHER

When trying different possible codes I managed to get a drawn stars on the error page that leads to another audio! This one I did not expect. It shows up after waiting a few moments, either appearing or being drawn in a 2 star or 5 star formation. (Clownillustration.com/soon)

The hidden Wally audios lead to a possible hidden message: "I WILL (HELP?)(FIND?) YOU NEIGHBOR (A?) (I?) (WILL?) UNDERSTAND (YOU) SOON". My guess is "I will help find you neighbour. I will understand soon". But that doesnt explain where "A" and "WAY" would go. It could also read "I will find a way to help you neighbor" (although "to" is not one of our words).

There is another hidden audio you get from clicking the drawn heart of YOU (clownillustration.com/you-1)

YXWVOE still works. Transcript has been added.

WOXYVE now had a cockroach that leads to another video where Barnaby and Home have a conversation. This takes place after his conversation with Julie and Howdy as he mentions both. It glitches out once Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/14-14-bh)

YWXOEV has a drawing of a phone after a few moments. Another audio with the transcript. Wally is being so Silly @:p (clownillustration.com/way)

VOYWEX works the same. I waited for a while and there were no added text or drawings.

EOVWXY works the same. Fhe webpage is also called answer, just like Wally's hidden audio files. Sounds like Wally is trying to communicate through the static at times?

That's all I found tonight without going through all the new images! It is 2am here, but it's so fun being able to dive into the new update!

By typing in different words you can get audio from HELP and PHONE (seems different than old phone call audio. More has been added, voice has been updated).

THOUGHTS

Also I have a guess that with all the videos the first numbers might put them into a chronological order? If true there may be up to 14 hidden audios as the last one (Barnaby and House) is 14-14 (14 our of 14). Might not work or mean anything if there are duplicate numbers (or they are happening at the same time).

If they can be placed in order, perhaps a new message or secrets can be found with the two letters they all end with! This I will test tomorrow.

Also the eyes appear on all pages out on the left and eight, most likely belonging to Wally as he makes multiple inferences towards eyeballs and him being related (I can see you, I see out of the eyes on my you've drawn, here is how you drawn eyes, etc.)

There has also been a lot of stuff relating to bugs, which Frank directly mentions is his expertise. Frank also is in multiple videos, which seems like there may or may not be a connection. I forget now, but it should be checked if Frank ever asks Wally's opinion since that is when videos glitch and end. If he does not, then that may be a sign that Frank knows more than they're letting on.

Good Bye for now!

[gigglesx333]

i absolutely adore Welcome Home and even though this post might be niche I think it's worth it 🎉🎉

Wally is ABSOLUTELY an avatar of the eye. Look at that little fucker. He EATS with his EYES. He has SOME FORM of sentience or self awareness. He literally looks at you through the screen. Eye avatar that's also touched by the Spiral? Even though they counteract a bit I feel it makes sense.. False friendships, your mind is Lying to you, madness, et cetera,.

Frank is absolutely an avatar of the corruption. Look at this motherfucker and tell me he is not FASCINATED by bugs and mold and rot. He has fucking SHELVES of self written notebooks filled to the brim.

Poppy would probably be an avatar of the End or the Extinction- look at her. Stuck in her barn, afraid to even touch cooking materials. Paranoia driving her to the Lonely, maybe??

Julie. Julie is wholeheartedly, probably not an avatar. I cannot think of anything I'd classify her as. Same with Howdy, I don't think he'd be an avatar of anything except maybe Corruption? Because he's a bug.

Eddie. Eddie you are ABSOLUTELY a surviving victim of the Stranger. Never getting the name of the unknown place he came from right, not talking much about his mother despite clearly looking up to her or having an otherwise positive relationship due to his profession and disposition? TEEEXTBOOK I Left and Came Back Wrong.

Barnaby. I adore Barnaby.,,., I feel like he wouldn't be an avatar exactly but definitely affiliated with Something. Maybe the flesh? The animalistic dread that you are only electrified meat, manifesting as bones, meat, animals, slaughterhouses? Fear of body horror, dysmorphia, being eaten or killed for meat? There are things insinuating he was killed (a patch in Wally's chair with his pattern, etc) so maybe.,

Sally!! Sally is is very Likely an avatar of the Vast in my opinion. Look at her introduction; it speaks for itself. "Sally had once been the brightest star in the sky, even more than those that surrounded her. However, upon looking down at a nearby celestial body from her spot, she knew there were still places she had yet to truly shine and fell from above as a shooting star. She has seemingly accomplished her aspired stardom, as there are only nine visible neighbors in Home, all of whom know her." Though that may be too surface level? I'm writing this slightly inebriated. Oops.

House.. House is wholeheartedly an avatar of the Web or Slaughter.. maybe both? Lots of calculated violence and secrets hidden below it.. Not sure, thougg.

[jamiekb]

Exploring the new Welcome Home Update

So here's my journey through the new update and the little details that it has, this will be a very long post and of course full of spoilers.

Look at the new design for the loading screen, so Christmas-y! I particularly love the antlers on Home's chimney.

Looking good Wally! And now we have new little doodles that seem to go with the holiday.

Ok so according to the admins no more bugs so wonder what will be different this time. Onto the news page then

Also I'm really digging the new background

Ok starting the FAQ now and some questions and answers are interesting. So they've been receiving more material covered in goop. They kinda adress in universe the move of the website, due to malicious material and in the code of the page.

And there is one new hidden message in the answers (I think) "The numbers are so hard to read. Sometimes I can't see them" So do we have to look for numbers now?

Took a detour through the stickers and they have new ones! There is Wally making a Home out of snow, sleeping Julie, I think Frank singing Carols to a butterfly, Poppy with a Jello thing, Eddie with a ton of presents to deliver, Howdy with some relatives, Sally as the star of a Christmas tree and Barnaby with a snowman.

Also with the "Welcome Home" banners two are a bit more desaturated now. And now that I think about it there are some stains in the main banner too

Neighborhood

Anyway unto the Neighborhood! Looks so cute although I'll be honest the clock tower is a bit weird and the trees feel a bit more intense at the edges or maybe that's just me

Eddie seems quite normal though now apparantly he has a mother, I'm confident that didn't use to be there. Is it weird that other than Wally hes the only one that didn't add anything new to his home for the season?

I think Howdy's description also changed a bit but nothing alarming. His store now seems to have signs welcoming his family for the holidays.

Checking Barnaby's description they seem to all have a bit more background info, since he apparently left his farm life to come to Home. Ok what does "Barnaby’s middle initial was often rotated in terms of what it stood for" mean???

Poppy is so cute! Is she holding cupcakes decorated like the characters or did she already do that? Ok but her new details feel very interesting: she claims to be able to fly but it's never shown and she never leaves her house to the point of being excluded from some events (like Wally's Homewarming party I guess)

Sallys is fine. She's besties with Poppy I guess and she can shine??? How do you make a puppet shine?? Were they roommates maybe?

Oh Julie got quite a backstory. Named siblings, she has paws and used to live in the forest on the outskirts of Home in a cave with her family. And she hibernates that's too cute!

Great my dear Frank still gets no background info (which is very interesting) but he goes get forced heteronormativity.

Ok and Wally is kinda similar, no background info just very dedicated to Home. And I''l see about coming back to the As above so below page since I can't seem to click it, might just be me. You can still see the goop at the doorstep though

Merchandise

Ok so first off the Merchandise page has a different background to the rest, some colorful static and took a bit to load.

oooh they even changed the layout for the phone since you could hear Wallys call, that's such a cool detail

Maybe I'll go back and see if Eddies or Sally's stories have been changed in the audio or transcipt but I'll stick to the new stuff for now. Now that i think about maybe Sally's doesn't have the bit where the transcript couldnt understand it.

Finally reached the wish book and I love it so much, this is so much work all around! My favorites are the Frank and Wally pillows, Eddie Dear Lil' Mailman's Kit, the Home Clock and specially the tree skirt! I now have to make those cute neighbors

Oh my god the record has the perfect Santa voice. And.. interesting that the ad cuts off when we get to Eddie. I'm not really surprised thought it would do something when it got to him or Frank, still suspicious.

Homewarming Story

The sound editing for all this new items is amazing!

I love the bit of the characters tripping up the narrators, this one just hasn't been able to get it right.

Hey is it me or in this one they've been a bit more insistent that Frank is a bit too literal but in a not so good way, not that much more intense but can't help but notice it. Seems a bit meaner

The return of Walliford!

Good to know Home uses he/him I guess

excuse me the fuck was that sound distortion???

and then it ends kinda abruptly, so that's that...

Where's my Eddie by the way, they didn't ask him and didn't find him while out on the town. I better hear him at some point or I will riot.

We have a code!

Ok so I was skimming the rest of the material before choosing what to listen to next and saw the cereal and craft at the back! So I guess now I have to find all the little drawings in the page and see when come from that

So I did listen to a few more songs, nice to see Eddie and Frank interacting as always, and noticed that in the transcript pages there are some entries for Mistery Audio, which are actually three of the previously hidden videos so that's interesting

Also not all the pages have four drawings some only one, so I've been trying to keep track which symbols i found where in case it matters. Still don't know what they're for just going around collecting them

Ok nvm I was doing things out of order and now that I got to media can see they are mentioned there

So after finally getting all the little things and going back to tumblr cause honestly I didnt really get what to do, I'm guessing it leads to a website, since one of the pages just has www as the code, so I'll try that I guess since I saw that there is a secret website somewhere. If it takes me too long I'll just look it up

Secret website

Nvm I'm too impatient at this point and I think i was missing a few letters so I just looked it up

Ok so that's interesting, so this person is kinda like the one behind the scenes talking to us along with whatever had infected the website before. They mention how the curator got sick (???) but is better now and that they'll try to update this website with the weird things they find

So the phone is one, like the weird glitched audio from Wally. This audio is interesting cause it plays out technically in real life but Wally speaks as if they are living out their lives...

And then moving on to the commercial they are speaking again of being compelled to know more, to see and wait. I'm sure some is curiosity but that can't be all

ohmygod this is more than 20 minutes long, the effort it must have taken Clown and team is monumental

that little animation is so cute!!!

fast forward many commercials and we have Eddie!!! And even a whole hand helping Poppy or something.

god the tobacco comercial of course they would have one

My poor Eddie boy is so anxious and depressed, why is no one talking to you bud? Like not getting him a present is a thing but not even Julie called him to play... and now is he's spiraling and even mad, that's unusual for sure. Also what's with the perspective of his videos, everything is a commercial or in the case of the secret videos it's interactions with other neighbors. This is more like the secret videos that we're seeing from someones POV, but not even that, we're observing him not looking through his eyes

Oh my poor Eddie is certainly going through it, who let them expose him to The Horrors? The horror aspect of this ARG sure has started to pick up speed, even I picked up some anxiety from that last segment

Also I did notice that Frank eventually dropped the Mr Dear for Eddie when he got more worried, almost like hes more worried than for an act that he has to put up huh?

So that was the newest Welcome home update. I can say it was everything I hoped for and more!!! The team behind it really gave it their all. From VAs for the audios to all the visual and graphic artists for the commercials its all so wonderful

[tiredly101]

Devilishly handsome singer part 6

Pairing: Mafia leader!Waly Darling x Mafia leader singer!Male reader

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 7,

Illustrated Mafia Au, wrote a little bit in Spanish but do use translation if you don't understand and picture done by @clownsuu

Wally smiled softly while twirling in his hands a apple whiskey, Howdy was cleaning the counter and looking down, minding his business. Both man were thinking, albeit different persons, on a guy; Wally was thinking of M/n’s enchanting eyes while Howdy was thinking on the kind yet shy smile that Gepeto gifted him. Our boys be simping 

“So, Gepeto and you?,” asked Wally smirking before taking a sip at his apple whiskey. Wally almost laughed at how it seemed that Howdy short circuited at his simple question, Howdy only shared his head in a no while one of his hands covered his blue dusted cheeks. Wally’s attention span on Howdy lasted a couple of minutes but soon his smiled grew when he heard his phone ring, it was exactly nine o’clock and that meant M/n’s gang, Hidden Pictures, was ready to start their attack on San Stars. 

“Hola hermoso, are you ready to conquer a gang?,” asked M/n’s insanely sweet voice making Wally blush softly. M/n smiled on the other side of the hand listening the soft crack Wally had on his voice when he answered with a simple yes.

“Mhmm, que lindura… We are going to meet at, como se llama esa calle pelotudo?, Boulevard Broken across the street of Dreams… si la conoces?,” said M/n and Wally blushed at his use of Spanish.

“Yes, I know where that is… We’ll be there in a few,” said Wally hearing how M/n chuckled before saying a “See you here preciosura” to hang up. Wally sighted dreamily and looked at Howdy who started telling everyone to grab their favorites weapons since they are going out.

Everyone grabbed their weapons; Wally took his mere presence, Howdy took his ice pick, Barnaby took his biggest guns, Julie took her tranquilizer sniper gun, Sally took a rocket launcher against everyone’s demise, Eddie took a simple revolver to be able to protect Frank because Poppy was simply going as medical stand by and Frank was going to help her through any panic attacks.

When they arrived at the meetup Wally smiled at seeing M/n with a long black trench coat were in the back had a picture with roses crossed over with red in the back and on the sleeves, he had some beautiful red high heels just go with it and a beautiful apple red silk shirt that was accompanied with a white corset.

“God, he is fucking beautiful…”

Part 6 is out dearies! Part 7 is on the making shall but let me know if you want to joint the tag list!

Tag list:

@darling-w @mythjustiice @lotusflowerexe @whynot5243 @vampyrefay @frindtheshapeshifter405 @unluckyredflames @elegantkidfansoul @fluffyart5000 @totofranken @sjalyne @thezhephir @mythjustiice @waywardstardustcollector @thezhephir @rizzardbutonlyforai @beu-is-here0 @therealdonnied @maijvme @yuri-dono-blog @curiosityscrewedthatcat

[storiesbyrhi]

Witch!Reader x Bat/Vampire!Eddie Munson Series Masterlist The Grimoire The Timeline

Warnings: canon typical violence, horror genre typical violence/some infrequent gore, swearing, animal death, no beta, death in childbirth (mentioned, not described), abusive parents, suicide, spiders/bugs, grief/mourning; light smut; warnings updated each chapter.

Synopsis: No witch has stepped foot in Hawkins since 1845, but when Vecna opens the ground and poisons the town, a voice begins to call to you. Have you been brought back to this cursed place to heal the townspeople’s wounds, to save a hexed bat that always finds its way to you, or to redefine your history with a reunion 150 years in the making?

Chapter Summary: Pulling strings and aura reading. 3124 words.

1986

Hedy Lamarr: Golden Age movie star and inventor. George Antheil: avant-garde composer and inventor. Together, at the beginning of World War II, they developed a radio guidance system for the Allied Forces that could employ frequency hopping technology in order to overcome the issue of the Axis Powers’ signal jamming. Decades later, their innovation would become the basis for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth tech.

The Hollywood dinner party Hedy and George were both invited to would mark their meeting in 1940. Hedy hadn’t planned on attending.

“I hear you won’t be the only free thinker there, Hed,” Abby sing-songed from the passenger seat of Hedy’s car. “Maybe you should go. And besides, Janet’s parties are always so fashionable. I’m sure even more so now she’s married that little costumer designer of hers.”

And with that, Abby had pulled yet another set of strings. It was what she excelled at. Mostly, that was a good thing. She was a good witch. However, you hadn’t always seen eye-to-eye, especially since she was prone to stealing your clothes. When she cleared her throat, you noticed she was wearing the purple lace top you loved. Not lost on the road trip to Hawkins then.

“While it is in a witch’s nature to romanticise… well, everything... I must redirect your attention to what is clearly the most critical issue…” Abby started. She shot you a look. “Where is your angelic vampire now?”

Gillian looked at Sally. She had assumed you’d left Eddie in Hawkins. Certainly, he couldn’t be within the walls of the coven. A vampire couldn’t cross the hidden forest threshold.

You felt Kelsey move closer to you, standing behind you, closing ranks.

“Somewhere safe,” you told Abby.

“Can’t be more specific than that?”

“Fuck, Abby, does that matter?”

“I just want to know if you’ve made the same mistake twice. Did you bring a fox into the henhouse again?”

“I resent the implication of being a defenseless hen,” Kels complained.

The witches were talking among themselves once more, Abby planting a seed of fear in the coven. Eyes darted around, often flicking to you with accusatory stares. Your stomach was churning and Eddie was pushed as deeply into the corner of your pocket as he could go.

“Doesn’t this boil down to – do the means justify the ends? Because we have never abided by that before,”

“If the ends are the survival of the coven and the safety of the humans, then yes!”

Arguments were breaking out across the hall.

“Why didn’t she tell us about the vampire as soon as she happened across it?”

“Because we are a coven, not a hive mind. We are allowed to explore and learn for ourselves.”

You couldn’t gauge if a consensus was forming. Questions were coming hard and fast.

“Can we trust any of them again?”

“Where is the justice?”

“If it really is good, if… he has a soul… were there others?”

“What else have we been wrong about?”

“Even if it is good, what if it makes more, and they are the monsters we used to know?”

The tension was continuing to build. Those in the coven who were conflict-avoidant began to filter out of the hall. Whatever happened, what conclusion came, they would accept unconditionally. Other witches who had hitherto said nothing, began to share their opinions with those near them.

A voice called from within the crowd. A demand to be brought closer. Guðrún sat in her enchanted rocking chair, letting it glide just above the ground until she came to a stop before you. She was the oldest in the coven, having lived lives upon lives upon lives.

You knew Guðrún would scold Gillian and Sally later. To keep her in the dark about such important matters showed her a deep disrespect. That matter would be settled in private, among friends. You, though, the way she looked at you was as cold as ice.

“You are a healer. A rare and special gift for a witch. It comes as no surprise that you believed you saw life in something undead. When you tell your story, conviction yellow. Beloving pink.”

Guðrún was the only aura reader of the coven. Ancient wisdom gave her additional senses.

“But now. As you stand. Green turning bad. Not yet deception. Something concealed.”

Don’t break eye contact.

Don’t hold your breath.

Don’t roll over and show your soft belly.

“Too many. Too many hues. What is concealed… It is a… void. Not black, but a vacuum.”

Guðrún’s gaze trailed down to where Eddie was in your pocket. She couldn’t see him, but she could see the empty space around him where an aura should be.

Sally had figured it out the night before. The way you sat, careful of the way your jacket draped over body. Other physical cues. It was that, and that she just knew you. You’d never be parted from Eddie again. She kept the secret from her sister.

Gillian worked it out only then, following Guðrún’s line of sight. “You couldn’t unhex him completely? He returned to the bat form?” she asked you, stepping closer, ignoring the coven’s growing sense of anger and terror.

You said nothing.

She narrowed her eyes. “No. You did. But… This is how you got him through the gate… A trick of form?”

Realisation rippled outwards. For a moment, curiosity and anxiety were radiating from the coven in equal measures.

“If it is good, such a well behaved creature, then show us,” Abby called.

“He is not a show dog, Abigail,” you spat at her.

“Obviously not a dog. A bat. You’ve always had a penchant for the poetic. It’s a bit on the nose though,”

“Shut the fuck up, Abby,” Kelsey growled.

A strange sort of anticipatory silence fell across the hall. You knew what they were all waiting for.

…

1986, a few days earlier

“It smells nice,” Eddie commented.

He was sitting on the couch behind you. You’d dragged your coffee table altar closer to it, so you could sit between his legs on the floor and do your work.

“It’s the sage. You always say something when there’s sage.”

Your protection spell for Eddie had been finished, but in the eleventh hour, you had a stroke of inspiration.

The potion was a total risk. It was more guesswork than witchcraft. Almost a Hail Mary. You’d probably be throwing up into the mix out of stress if Eddie wasn’t gently playing with your hair.

It was symbiosis. He liked to have his hands on you. You liked his nails on your scalp. Everyone was kept sedated.

“It’s a good idea, my love,” Eddie told you, again.

“In theory,”

“And in practice. It will work.”

…

1986, a few days later

You knew what they were all waiting for.

“Remember that what you put into the world comes back tenfold,” you warned.

After one last look to Kelsey for support, you reached into your jacket and scooped Eddie up. While keeping your hand touching your chest, you uncurled your fingers to reveal the small bat.

Mostly, the witches were underwhelmed. Some, confused.

“Turn it back,” a voice from somewhere in the crowd said.

“Again. He is not a fucking show dog,” you sneered.

“Then how do we know it’s not dangerous?” Abby asked. “Who says as soon as it’s back in its vampire form, it won’t try to kill us all?”

She’s a good witch, you reminded yourself. A good witch. Part of your coven. But every family has the shit-stirring little sister that could stand to be brought down a peg or two. Alas, it was not the time nor place.

“Me,” you answered.

“And me,” Kelsey added.

“If you come pleading for absolution, the condition of an introduction is not too great an ask,” Guðrún declared. “If it is not a monster, then a meeting should pose no challenge,”

“The challenge doesn’t lie with me. It is with the coven,” you told her.

“You fear violence,”

“Yes. Should I not? Can you tell me all the colours emanating around us are peaceful blues? I know you see red and black and midnight tones. Why shouldn’t I fear this?”

Guðrún studied your face, briefly read the room. Before she could say anything else, and before Abby could move things along with a tug of a string, you let yourself really feel the fear. You wanted to puke.

“I have everything to lose,” you said, voice cracking. Eddie’s tiny little bat hands clung to your shirt, your hands shielding him still. “I am entirely prepared to lose my place here. And, you know what happens to a covenless witch. I have spent weeks agonising over this. All the possible outcomes. Yet here I fucking am. Telling you, all of you, what I did. What I did wrong. Why I did it. Telling you that I was stupid and I feel embarrassed. But that I was in love. That I am in love. That I was hurt in an immeasurable way. But I have found a way from there to here, and that means something. It is worth something.”

Everybody was silent.

It was always going to come to this.

Turning to Kelsey, she pre-empted your request, casting darkness over the windows, then heading out the hall.

“His name is Eddie. Edward. He was twenty when he was turned. It was 1586. He had no choice. He’s almost finished The Lord of the Rings. He helps me forage. He does housework… Eddie has a list of cats throughout history he thinks are cool. His favourite is Unsinkable Sam… He’s… He’s not what you think he is.”

Still, nobody said anything.

Kelsey reappeared at your side, holding out a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.  Taking them, you turned your back on the coven, standing close enough to Kels that you formed a small partition. Your teeth were trying to chatter, nervous energy screaming to get out of you.

Please. Please. Please.

You didn’t know who you were praying to.

You said the words, Eddie appeared.

The silence became a living thing. It ate up gasps and giggles. Words and wind.

Eddie dressed quickly, but not too quickly. No vampire speed. No sudden movements. He looked you dead in the eye, your reflection in that deep darkness. Hand in hand, you stepped to reveal him to your coven.

There was not a single face of indifference.

Becoming hyper-aware of everything in your surroundings, you first focussed on Sally and Gillian. Their slumped postures. Deep set frowns. Resignation. No threat.

Abby’s fast and shallow breathing. Blown pupils.

Guðrún was squinting so hard you could barely see her eyes. She could will it all she wanted, there was no aura to read. She had no better insight than you. Than any of the others. It made her feel powerless, but in that was grace. If she had no better vantage point, her vote meant nothing more. She ceded. 

The grief was written all over Sara’s face as she moved silently through the coven. You stepped in front of Eddie, held a hand out to her.

“Bug, wait,” you asked. Sara – Bug – who you used to spend hours drying and pressing flowers with. Preserving colour and beauty. Happy in each other’s company.   

“Don’t call me that. You don’t get to call me that anymore,” Sara snapped. “You walked by our side for centuries, but by a single moonlit night you betrayed us?”

“Sara-”

“No. She died in my arms… You were there. You tried to stitch her together. But her skin was too shredded. Too much blood loss. They ripped her apart and now… Now this?”

Sara’s grandmother was older than Guðrún but perished at the hands of Eddie’s colony. You had tried to heal her. Save her. There hadn’t been any hope though.

Sara’s hand moved in her pocket and you became acutely aware of why she had not said anything earlier. She hadn’t been in the room. Sara had disappeared and filled her pockets with the death dust. Most witches had stored theirs away, the need gone. Not Sara. Not ever.

She moved fast, her palms flung open and a deep breath out pushing dust up and at Eddie with supernatural speed and force. It would only take a single flake of it to kill him.

It all happened in an instant. The magic hit the border of the protection spell and Sara was showered in the dust, as if she had been the intended target. Simultaneously, Eddie hissed, an innate and unconscious reaction to an attack. And you grabbed him by the arm and yanked him backward, putting space between him and the coven.

Everyone froze, processing your warning of tenfold and the events that had transpired.

Tears streamed down Sara’s face. “You’re choosing him over us?”

Abby walked to her, wrapped an arm around her waist. “Bug,” she said softly.

“I’m asking to not have to choose,” you tried to explain.

Sara wasn’t listening, not to you, not to Abby, who was whispering something to her. Distracted by this, you did not see Alexis.

Alexis did not come for death. She came for pain. She held a dagger made from carnelian, steel, and crocodile scales. She drove the dagger through the air, but hit the spell border just as the death dust had. The spell was a mirror, it would reverse the magic back to sender.

Alexis’ blade spun from her hands and glided too quickly at her. It aimed for her heart, as she had aimed for Eddie’s. Its trajectory would have seen it plunge through her ribcage’s gaps and into her still-beating heart. If Alexis died, it would all be over.

But Eddie was there.

He moved in a blink and caught Alexis with one arm, holding her safely. His other grabbed the dagger, letting it slice through the side of the hand so he could catch it mid-air. The room held its breath. Alexis’ green eyes were wide and set on Eddie. She couldn’t look away, couldn’t pull herself from Eddie’s embrace.

“I mean you no harm,” he murmured quietly, just to her. “And I like your freckles.”

Eddie let Alexis go; she stumbled a few steps before steadying herself. He moved slowly again, turning to the coven and dropping the dagger, letting it clang against the floorboards.

You rushed to him, throwing your arms around him. “Are you okay?” Looking down, Eddie had already healed from the blade. You held him tightly. He closed his eyes and melted into you.

The witches watched. Some submerged in waves of grief, some choking on anger. Some could smell honeysuckle, a sure sign of true love. Others felt a ripple of change, their skin prickling with goosebumps.

You looked to the coven.

“This is… too much. It’s too much for me. And for each of you… But it’s done…” You shook your head, then shrugged. “I just… I don’t know… We have been guided by so many forces. By what we learn. By fate, and life, and death. By the systems of morality we take from the humans. By each other. And I don’t know what’s really right. So, I’ll make my own meaning now. It’s… yeah, it’s been working. What I’ve done in Hawkins. It is good. There’s good to be done there…”

It was resonating. Ev, Meg, and Hailey. Ash, Mel, and Kelsey. More and more witches, lost in a liminal space of post-purpose. What did it mean to be a witch without a goal? What did it mean to be a woman in 1986?

Eddie watched you. I will diminish, and go into the West and remain Galadriel, the book echoed in his head. You held yourself with the same loveliness as Galadriel. Not always, but now.

“I’m going back. Maybe I’ll stay there. Maybe I’ll find somewhere else that needs help. But I don’t belong here anymore. And, maybe that’s okay. Maybe it will… it will be okay…”

As your thoughts trailed off, you met Abby’s gaze. She nodded once, a promise that you would be left alone. You nodded back, then looked for Guðrún. She had already left, putting faith in the youth of the coven.

Some of the witches began to leave the hall. You had no way of knowing who you had hurt and if you would ever be forgiven, but you were willing to pay the price of that shame to keep Eddie.

Kelsey was the first to come to you. “I’m coming with you,” she announced fearlessly.

“Me too,” echoed Mel.

The others stepped up, nodding.

“You don’t have to do this,” you told them.

“And you don’t get to tell us what to do,” Meg replied.

“You’re right. Maybe you don’t belong here. But maybe you’re not the only one,” Ev said.

A deep exhaustion was taking over. Your energy was draining into the protection spell, the mirrored bubble around Eddie took so much of your magic to keep intact. All you had in you to do was nod. You’d argue with them another day.

“Hi,” from Ash then. She grinned at Eddie.

“Hi,” he replied, flashing her a trademark smile. He took your hand. “I, ah, look forward to meeting you all. But I believe it might be best if I depart. For now,”

“Yeah,” you agreed. “Do you wanna go ahead? I know this looks like a truce but it feels more like a stalemate. I’ll be on the road in a few hours... Sic fiat,” and the bat swirled through the air and out the open door. He flew up, up, up, until the wards of the coven were far below him.

Eddie covered miles of Catskills quickly, before finding a nice tree to huddle in, awaiting your arrival.

“You’re leaving already?” Kelsey asked.

“You don’t have to go right away,” Hailey told you.

“I’m causing more sorrow than joy being here. It’s not fair on the others,”

“What happened wasn’t fair to you,” Mel pointed out.

“I know. But… This isn’t black and white… But I’m kind of tired… Meg… Any cinnamon rolls ready? You know, for the road?”

You sat with your sisters, drinking tea and eating baked goods. They told you about their lives, about what the past few months had looked like for them. And while none of it was on the same scale as Henry Creel and revived vampires, you realised you were not alone.

When you imagined the path forward, you were always holding Eddie’s hand. You were the only witch walking though. However, all it took to build a coven was a couple of witches with overlapping notions of love, magic, and morality. Maybe there was room for more.

End Note: Thank you to @jo-harrington for teaching me about the very real Hedy Lamarr. If you don't know about her, she is absolutely worth a Google.

To the newest additions to the coven - @munson-blurbs and @littlesubbyflower. Thank you for being the face of objection.

And, to anyone that loves Catfish and the Bottlemen as much as I do... I had to do it. Hopefully, it wasn't too cringe lmaoooooo.

Grimoire is updated.

REBLOG AND TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS AND FEELS!!!

Love yas.

Fic Taglist:  @paranoidmunson  @idkidknemore @paprikaquinn @stardustworlds @loz-brooke @wyverntatty @vintagehellfire @dark-academia-slut @scarletwitchwhore @becks1002 @mrsdollardog @heyndrix @luceneraium @rosaline-black @devilinthepalemoonlite @goldencherriess @iamwhisperingstars @wiltedwonderland @blueywrites @breezybeesposts @jadehowlettthewolf @spikesvamp79 @foreveranexpatsposts @tortoiseshellspells @wingedpeachjudgegiant @stardustmunson @live-love-be-unique @fangirling-4-ever @reanimated-alice @b-irock @gh0stlybunnie @myown-worstenemy-2003 @woozzz @cyberxlust @hiscrimsonangel @buckysbarne @m00nlight101 @word-wytch @spicysix @briasnow-blog @goth-cowgirl-03

All Eddie Taglist: @solomons-finest-rum @ruinedbythehobbit @sweetpeapod @thorfemmes  @corrodedhawkins @grungegrrrl @lilzabob  @averagemisfit03 @ches-86 @ilovecupcakesandtea @onehotgreasymechanic @hazydespair @mel-the-fangirl @eddies-hid3out @siren-lungs @aheadfullofsteverogers @hiscrimsonangel @dashingdeb16

[hajimedics]

WELCOME HOME JULY 2023 UPDATE SPOILERS

this is more of a ramble rather than a concrete theory. but! another observation I've made regarding the site; you know the little bugs that lead to hidden "answer" pages containing a video with audio of various characters interacting?

I've always thought of it as the bugs showing a glimpse into the mundane, everyday lives of the puppets outside of the puppet show's official episodes. there's a lack of story structure fit for a children's show, no moral of the story, no goofy sound effects. the puppets are all just.... chilling. living their lives.

notice how scratchy the audios retrieved by the welcome home restoration team are. audios from the media page and merchandise page, have this vintage feeling and noise filter overlaying them. while in the "answer" audios, the clarity of the sound is much more clear.

the "answer" pages also show other facets of the puppets outside of their easy-to-stomach-by-kids personalities. take sally for example.

in the "it's for you!" telephone merch, sally is shown to be proud of herself, inching towards being vain. fitting for the classy, confident performer character archetype!

in an "answer" page, like 2-14-sp, despite her bravado, her more caring side is shown. she boosts poppy's confidence . though she still retains her proud side.

in 3-14-hs, you'd expect her to scoff and say something along the lines of "instant food is not befitting for a star like me!" but she takes the offers that howdy gave to her. she prioritizes her plays, her schedules, a quality over quantity person.

wally is also present in every single [number]-14-[two character's initials] video. he was there when poppy and sally was having tea time. his hand can be seen reaching for a cup.

in each "answer" audio, he plays the role of the dismissed third person, always watching, observing. his friends only mention him at the end of the audios and it's mostly them asking him for his input on such and such subjects or have him pick a side in the problem they're discussing.

except in 14-14-bh, a conversation between barnaby and home. this is home's only appearance in the "answer" audios. this is also the only "answer" audio that doesn't refer to wally only in one line (though the audio does glitch out when barnaby eventually calls his name).

I have a strong feeling that he's the one who put the bugs in the website -- he's the one who kept messing up the site and putting secrets inside of it. tying to the word "answer"; wally has said that he'll make the neighbors understand. he never explicitly said what we'll understand, but perhaps the "answer" pages that he (I assume) showed is what it is....?

also unrelated, but bugs..... inside a website.... web bug.... computer bug.... bugging.....

[howlingmod]

Nighttime Friend

summary ; reader is some sort of scrapped character and is also wally’s slightly scary looking friend . wally likes scary people /ref

tw ; body horror? described reader very little but they are meant to be. well. Scrapped. , very very very fast and loose canon compliancy wise … mix of drabble and hcs for my own sanity. alternates from 'in show' to 'real world' type of setting ! maybe confusing. + very little proofreading

wc - 1.8k

It’d been such a nice day out today. The clouds had given way for the sun to shine upon every flower and the trees had gave way for comfortable patches of shade and the grass had given way for a comfortable bed which in turn gave way for someone to rest on it for a while. Wally had found himself enjoying recreating his scenery quite a bit today, there were just so many little details to add and take in to capture in oil paints. It truly, truly was such a wonderful day.

And yet, he couldn’t help but be excited for it to end.

Not out of exhaustion or irritation! No, no, quite the opposite, really! He loved spending time with his friends out and about, even if they would just stop by to talk while he painted, he loved every moment of it. Yet, he always knew that he was missing one of his friends whenever he was out like this. He couldn’t help but let his thoughts drift off to the one person he’d never had come up to talk to him as he finished the wings of a butterfly or simply sit in contentment with when brushstrokes closed off a leaf on a tree.

So, when the sky had begun to shift colors, he was quick to pack his supplies away. The sun gave way for the beginnings of stars, the heat ebbed away to a comfortable medium that gave way for the cozy mental image of a light blanket. He’d returned a quick, whipping wave from Julie with a cooler, lazier one of his own and a chimed ‘Good night, neighbor.’ He’d given well wishes to Frank and a light-hearted ‘Don’t stay up too late,’ to Howdy, so on and so forth. He’d always liked giving his friends one last little reminder that he cared about them before he returned back home. He liked making sure his friends were happy, that was always very, very important to Wally.

As such, he always made sure to make sure you were happy, too.

As far as he could tell, none of his other friends knew about you. He’d asked Sally if she’d ever seen someone about your height in her audiences, asked Eddie if he’d ever seen a letter with an odd address, and Barnaby if he’d ever heard a specific kind of laugh. All of his questions came back with uncertain answers, they could recall something similar, but there was never anything definite. They could feel like they'd seen something not far off from his description, but it never was on the mark.

(To be entirely fair, he couldn’t really remember when he’d first seen you either though. It comes out foggy whenever he tries to recall, vague shapes and colors all blurring together incoherently when he tries to think of the first thing you’d ever said to him. He hopes he didn’t say anything silly to you. He likes making a good first impression, after all!)

[He couldn't remember what you originally looked like anymore. It was all just blobs of colors in his mind. He couldn't find any recordings or artwork. He couldn't find the portrait of you from that one episode recorded a long time ago. He knew he hadn't gotten rid of it. It was hidden, somewhere in that workshop.]

He’d offered to introduce you to them properly, a few times now. You’d always shake your head quickly, insisting you weren’t ready to be seen yet. That was alright, he just figured you were a little shy. Maybe you’d get along well with Poppy … He could wait to find that out.

(He could pick up on the unspoken bits. You weren’t ready to be seen like this. You didn’t know what they would say. He could understand. He didn’t like being seen with his hair down. Friends or not, there was always that nagging, wasn’t there?)

[So why, then, did he not worry about hiding away when he’d return with hair flattened by rain or bedhead in the mornings? Why then did you slink out whenever he’d come back to ask how his day was? Why was it different? Why did he feel different when it came to you? Why did he feel different about you? Is this how friends think of eachother? He didn’t think about anyone else in the neighborhood like this. Why was it that whenever you’d dismiss his offers words would pool on his tongue, tied by something unfamiliar and new-]

“I’m home, dear!” He was never one to change his volume much, he’d always struggled with getting much louder than his normal speaking voice. Yet, he’d always get just a bit louder whenever making this (quite uneeded, you could hear the door closing along with his footsteps) announcement of sorts.

He could feel his smile grow just a tad wider when he’d picked up on those telltale, quiet footfalls from somewhere else in Home. He could feel something or other pull at his chest when you’d finally shambled into view, instinctively stepping forward to help close the gap. It was something of a routine, at this point, evident in how you’d leaned down the moment he’d his hands up to you, finding their place at the sides of your face.

(You felt different from him and his friends, less soft and more scratchy. Not to any jarring degree, just enough that when he’d brush a thumb over your cheeks or your hand he would pick up on the difference. It was a curious little bit, to him.)

[You’d remarked on the difference yourself, once. You’d been particularly touchy that day, holding his face in your hands and raking nails through the shortest parts of his hair. You’d said he felt so fuzzy. You’d said you missed feeling fuzzy too. You didn’t say anything else that night. He’d taken to tracing shapes on your hands and arms when you both finally laid down. His tongue was tied again, surplus of words choked back. He liked the way you felt, it was unique to you. He didn’t mind the difference, he didn’t mind that you looked different, it wasn’t your fault, there were just some budget cuts that-]

You didn’t have to speak, either, with how familiar and treaded this routine was he already knew what you were asking when you’d tug on one of his sleeves and nudge further into his hands.

(You didn’t talk too much, you said that it felt funny if you did it for too long. He could vaguely understand that, your voice sounded just a tad different to the others as well. You obviously had your own tone and vocal quirks, but it was always just a little off in some indescribable way. There was always something humming underneath your words, like feedback on a microphone.)

[He was finding he rather liked the sound of feedback on a microphone. He was finding he rather liked you, he was finding himself imagining you waving him over while having tea with Julie, or laughing at something Barnaby said at a picnic while you sat next to him, or some other little fantasy. They felt so real that it hurt to think about. If he could just find lots of thread and more of your original parts then maybe things could go back to that script-]

“Oh, I have so much to tell you! Sally’s working on another play, and it’s actually very interesting so far. It’s about …”

-Wally finds you veeerry very interesting in many ways. He won’t pry too much if he ever notices his questions seem to upset you, but do expect an inquiry or two about this and that. They mostly revolve around how certain things feel for you, after all, he’d hate to do something to accidentally make you uncomfortable! Oh, it’s too hard for you to lift something up? That’s ok, he can get it for you! It’s too uncomfortable to talk? Just fine! He’s got plenty to talk to you about in your stead.

-When you’d first started interacting, the staring was a point of discomfort. You knew he likely didn’t mean anything by it, but it was hard to not feel just a little anxious under his gaze. While you knew he was just like that, it didn’t stop you from worrying if he was judging you- which! he has (and will!) reassure you time and time again that he would never do! He loves you far too much to do anything like that :[ … while he definitely struggled with remembering to, he made an effort to try and . not . stare too much, and even when he did he would focus on select things (your eyes were his favorite by far, scuffs from landing the floor time and time again and all) rather than you overall in hopes you wouldn’t worry as much. If it’s ever one of those days where you just can’t seem to stand being looked at by any means, he offers to walk around in a blind-fold. He does NOT care if he trips and falls, he just wants his dear friend to be happy. Besides, you tend to keep him safe when he sticks by your side, so he trusts you won’t let him make an utter fool of himself.

-On better days, though, he likes to paint you. He likes painting all of his friends, of course, but it’s different when it comes to you. Every last portrait makes him find some little detail he hadn’t noticed before. Just last week he’d noticed you had multicolored scraps of fabric sticking out just above one of your wrists. The week before that he’d noticed one of your fingers had dark blue stitched attaching it to your hand. So on, so forth. (While he struggles with his words when it comes to you, he really does find you captivating. You’re full of so many little bits and pieces all entangled in such an interesting way he’s never imagined before. If he could get himself together and you could bear listening to sappy-speak at length, he would go over every last detail that he adores about you, from the scraps to the threads to the faint scuffs in your pupils. He does hope he doesn’t look too silly whenever he stares at you for a brief moment or two, it gets hard to not smile just a little wider when he’s gazing at you so.)

-VERY very big fan of cuddling with you :] your ability to not exactly fall to the same physical boundaries that him and his friends due lends to you being able to pull him just a tad closer. He likes the pressure when you lean on him with limbs keeping him close. While he does try to stay up as long as he can to spend time with you, at one point or another he does want to sleep … however that does not mean he would like you to seperate from him. Surely, you wouldn’t mind his “”“”“snoring”“”“”“”“” (read. repetition of ‘im sleeping’) too much, right? He sure hopes not, he’s a little too comfortable to really want to sleep anywhere other than in your arms.

-He tries to sneak you out in the daytime sometimes … he only does it when you’re alright with it, of course, but he’s veeerry careful. He understands you aren’t quite ready to meet all your friends (Yes, your friends. He knows they would love you, it was meant to be!) yet, so he’ll make sure to bring you to some pleasant places he knows they wouldn’t go to at that time whenever you want some fresh air. (Given the fact that you tend to be more active at night, chances are you sleep during the day. He finds your sleepiness to be very cute, so you’ll have to forgive him if he pokes just a teeeny bit of fun at you … he just thinks your tired play-arguing is fun.)

[nobone-blun]

El sonido de sollozos se escuchaba en el tranquilo vecindario, en la fría noche casi nadie estaba afuera, pero esta vez había dos personitas con una más pequeña que lloraba apretando los labios, temblando de miedo por las dos raras personas que estaban a su lado.

- Hiciste bien, Wally~ - Alabó, la mujer con cuernos y cola de corazón, piel color salmón con tres diamantes color rojo en sus mejillas y un diamante en su mano, algo distintivo de su raza, le apretó ligeramente el brazo.

Wally solo pudo ver a la persona muerta en el suelo de tierra, sus manos manchadas sosteniendo un cuchillo lleno de sangre, sacudiendo su fuerte agarre, nunca pensó que su primera vez saliera de casa fuera.

La chica del vestido intentaba tranquilizarle, con piropos y palabras dulces, pero su cara llena de felicidad decía todo lo contrario a sus palabras, que tenían un toque de humor en cada frase.

Wally no se sentía tranquilo en absoluto, ni siquiera la miraba, lo único que pensaba era que quería volver a casa, quería ir a su lugar seguro y no estar relacionado con este lugar. Una voz fuerte que intentaba ser calmada interrumpió sus pensamientos, dirigiendo toda su atención a la mujer monstruo que sonreía.

- Tranquilízate, volverá a la vida - Dijo casi como un susurro dándole palmaditas en la espalda, que para ella serían suaves, pero para el pequeño eran fuertes palmadas que hacían que su cuerpo se estremeciera, teniendo que contener los gemidos de protesta que querían salir de su boca.

La chica monstruo, observando como se calmaba, se separó un poco para presentarse sin moverse tanto de su sitio.

- ¡Soy Julie Joyful! - Se llevó una de sus manos al pecho, rasgando un poco su vestido gracias a sus garras, chasqueando la lengua un poco molesta, pero rápidamente se olvidó de ese pequeño problema para volver a sonreír mostrando sus dientes - ¡Y ella es Sally Hidden Star! - Señaló a la chica de la máscara que la saludó aparentemente, ¿Sonriente? Wally no lo sabía con exactitud y eso le daba más miedo, no saber que es ella, es aterrador.

- Esta es tu cálida bienvenida Dear Wally Fearful -Dijeron ambas mujeres dándole un cálido abrazo, puede que no estén todos, pero mañana estarán todos para dar la bienvenida a su nuevo vecino.

____

The sound of sobbing could be heard in the quiet neighborhood, in the cold night almost no one was outside, but this time there were two little people with a smaller one who cried pursing her lips, trembling with fear for the two rare people next to her.

- You did good, Wally~ - She praised, the woman with horns and a heart tail, salmon colored skin with three red colored diamonds on her cheeks and a diamond on her hand, something distinctive of her race, lightly squeezed his arm.

Wally could only see the dead person on the dirt floor, his stained hands holding a knife full of blood, shaking his strong grip, he never thought his first time leaving home outside.

The girl in the dress was trying to reassure him, with compliments and sweet words, but her face full of happiness said the opposite of her words, which had a touch of humor in every sentence.

Wally didn't feel calm at all, he didn't even look at her, all he was thinking was that he wanted to go home, he wanted to go to his safe place and not be related to this place. A loud voice trying to be calm interrupted his thoughts, directing his full attention to the smiling monster woman.

- Calm down, he will come back to life - She said almost as a whisper patting him on the back, which for her would be soft, but for the little one they were strong slaps that made his body shudder, having to contain the moans of protest that wanted to come out of his mouth.

The monster girl, observing how he calmed down, separated a little to introduce herself without moving so much from her place.

- I'm Julie Joyful! - She brought one of her hands to her chest, tearing her dress a bit thanks to her claws, clicking her tongue a bit annoyed, but quickly forgot about that little problem to smile again showing her teeth - And this is Sally Hidden Star! - He pointed to the girl in the mask who greeted her apparently, Smiling? Wally didn't know exactly and that made it scarier, not knowing it's her, scary.

- This is your warm welcome Dear Wally Fearful - Said both women giving him a warm hug, they may not all be there, but tomorrow they will all be there to welcome their new neighbor.

(Mi inglés no es mi idioma dominante lo siento) / (My English is not my dominant language sorry)

[salty-croissants]

Can you do headcanons for Rayman with a Sally type of s/o from the nightmare before Christmas?,Like a reader that tries to tell him about Eden and all of that but even if he doesn’t listen she still stays by his side and loves him nonetheless pretty please :)

Thank you for the request ! 

As a big Nightmare Before Christmas fan , I found this scenario to be very neat :D 

I tried to integrate a few personality traits of Sally in the reader , I hope it worked !

Details : use of gender neutral reader ;

friends to lovers ; 

no warnings needed , other than a few swear words at the end  

One of the many things you’ve always admired about Rayman is the sheer passion he always put in his dream of hosting his very own show : 

you have been watching his hard work for years , all his sacrifices … and all the difficult times he went through . 

Being so different from everyone else made him an easy target for people’s derision and prejudices , and for the longest time Rayman felt like no one would’ve ever accepted him for who he really was … 

Until he met you .

You were the first person who showed Rayman kindness , and let’s just say he will never be able to forget that : 

you always seemed genuinely interested in what he was doing , never once shunning him for his appearance and even offering him words of advice and encouragement …

< Another failure … I thought this time was going to be different … can’t believe I was so stupid … > 

< Rayman , you’re not stupid . I know it’s tough , but people will understand your talent someday … 

You just have to be patient . > 

He was truly grateful for your friendship , and it’s also thanks to you if he managed to get through it all and get where he is today . 

Even tough he’s now the voice of Eden , Rayman hasn’t forgotten about you and all that you’ve done for him , and whenever he’s not too busy with his shows he loves to spend time with you , happy to have a chance to get his mind off of work : 

your presence is just so soothing … your kindness and eagerness to listen to him always manages to put his mind at ease , and sometimes he can’t help but wonder what would it be like if the two of you became … something more .

< You mean a lot to me y/n , you know ? I think I might be … uh … > 

< Yes , Ray … ? > 

< … heh … oh , it’s nothing , don’t worry about it . I’m just tired … > 

Little does he know that you feel the exact same way , however every time you try to say it out loud the anxiety of getting rejected , or worse , making your long time friend uncomfortable has always stopped you from doing so … 

Much like Rayman . 

… but the day you eventually discovered Eden’s plans and just how much they have been using Rayman for their propaganda , everything changed . 

You felt horrible to know that the people who promised to help him make his dream come true were just doing that to cover the many dark realities they were trying so hard to keep hidden from everyone , and you knew that you had to tell him somehow …

Of course , it didn’t exactly go well .

< Please - I know this sounds crazy , but you have to believe me ! 

The Board of Directors aren’t who you think they are … I would never lie about something so serious to you , Rayman , you know that , right … ? >

< *sigh* … y/n , I … 

I’m sorry , but that just isn’t … possible . Sure , the Directors are pretty strict about a few things , but they wouldn’t do that to me … I’m their star . > 

< But - > 

< Please , let’s not talk about this anymore … I know you mean well , but I think it’s just a bunch of … really well made fake news . 

I gotta go study my next script , just … try to forget about it , okay ? > 

You were admittedly pretty hurt by Rayman’s lack of trust in you … but maybe you just needed to think of a better way to explain everything to him .

You only want him to be alright … it’s for his own good … 

Despite everything , you still remained by his side , comforting him after the disastrous interview with Red and reminding him to come visit you if he ever needed help … Well , one day you were surprised to find an unannounced Rayman outside your door , wearing a coat and with a terrified expression on his face that you’ve never seen before …

It was enough to make you very concerned .

< Woah - come in Ray … are you okay ? 

Did … something else happen ? > 

The moment he heard you lock the door , was the moment he finally broke down :

You watch him take a few steps in your direction , locking you in a tight embrace while sobbing right next to your ear …

< y-y/n … I’m sorry , I’m just … I-I’m so sorry … ! > 

After a second of shock , you hug him back , confused but most importantly worried .

< Ray … what’s wrong ? If you let me know I can try to help you … > 

< You were right … you were right about e-everything … I went talk to the frog , and he showed me … I-I saw … > 

Rayman tries to take a deep breath to calm himself down … to no avail .

< I saw what those bastards did … using my f-face … oh god … i-it’s so bad , and if I just listened to you I would’ve known sooner … I’m such a fucking idiot … will … will you ever be able to forgive me … ? > 

You have to admit , it’s all still very confusing to listen to , but as soon as he stops talking you place your hands on his cheeks , gently wiping away his tears . 

< Of course I forgive you . I understand , it really wasn’t an easy truth to come to terms with … 

I just want you to know that no matter what happens , I’m always going to be on your side , Rayman , because … you mean a lot to me too . I just wasn’t able to say it before … > 

You both stare into each other’s eyes , before you realize that you’ve been doing that for a bit too long and stand up , your cheeks blushing a little …

< A-anyway , um … since you’re here I could get you something to drink , so maybe we can sit and talk about what happened a bit more calmly … if that’s okay with you , of course ! > 

Rayman can’t help but smile in front of how cute you are , and after a few more deep breaths he starts feeling a bit less overwhelmed . 

< Yeah … yeah , that’d be great . > 

[alittlefanatic]

hi!! can you write a wally x reader one shot where the reader joins this foxtrot ballroom dance competition with wally (they join as friends, i think you can see where im going w this) and through those days of practice, both the reader and wally get flustered by eachother (hidden mutual crushing !!) omgg then the reader asks poppy for advice bc shes kimd of like the mother figure of the neighbourhood .. then the day of the competition arrives, wally is a little anxious about it like what if they fall on the floor?? he only learned how to ballroom dance bc he wanted to partner up with the reader but the reader reassures that hes going to do great and glamourous!! they perform and omgg the eye contact, how secured both of their grasp is on one another, the reader's whispers of reassurance to wally while they danced to can't take my eyes off you?? omgggg, both of them confess during when they were awarded for 2nd place !!

oh and ofc, always make sure to take breaks n drink water!! :D

STORY BELOW!

Oh, this made my heart absolutely MELT!

I don't know much about dance competitions but do not worry I will indeed try my best neighbor!!

I think I'm going to make this story have multiple parts, so I apologize if this is too long! I already have chapter Ideas if this tells you anything LMAO But I have so many ideas for this story in particular that I want to put my all into it! Until the other parts come out though, enjoy this first chapter! And if you would like, I can tag you in the updates

____________

🍎Shall We Dance? - Day 1🍎

Wally Darling x Reader Story

Tags: Fluff, Romantic, Established Crush, and Friendship!

Summary: Sally recently announced a Dance competition in the neighborhood! Granted, you have no idea how to even Foxtrot, but it couldn't be so bad right? Besides! You have your best friend Wally there as your Dance Partner! Nothing could go wrong...well, that is, until some feelings come to the surface...

(Lovely art by TTobeeb on Twitter)

It was a beautiful Sunny day in the neighborhood! It was peaceful, quiet, relaxed...well, you would say that if it wasn't for Sally Starlet running around happily in the neighborhood, posters in hand as she plastered them onto doors and trees and fences all along the neighborhood.

You and Wally were sitting in the grass simply chatting in the warm sun, spring was coming to a close and summer was beginning to arrive, when you noticed the happily frantic star gushing and dancing about. You couldn't help but glance toward Wally, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you have any Idea what she's up to?"

"No clue neighbor. It could be that she's trying to set up another play?"

"Maybe? God, I don't know if I could star in another one. I completely messed up my lines halfway through and I just wanted to lie down and perish."

Wally couldn't help but laugh, giving you a friendly pat on the shoulder. Wally was your best friend, you have pretty much been through it all! Julie would tease the two of you relentlessly, saying that we'd be the 'picture perfect couple' but we always joked about it and cast it aside. We were just good friends, and I was happy to say that I knew him!

"Oh come on neighbor, you weren't that bad."

"Wally, how does a person mess up Romeo and Juliet?"

Wally was about to answer before the bright and energetic came running up to the two of us.

"NEIGHBOR! WALLY! You're going to join my competition right?" She spoke excitedly, doing a twirl as she held her fliers close, before handing one to each of you. You cocked your head, confused.

"Competition? What happened to plays?" You spoke, reading over the flier. It was very colorful and bright, with red glitter over the title 'Foxtrot Dance Competition.' This was dancing, was it not?

"Yes, this is a form of...ballroom dance? Have you been hanging out with Julie again? I know how much of a romantic she is." Wally spoke, obviously teasing but Sally was oblivious, nodding her head.

"Yes! Julie would talk about how ball dances worked and thought we should incorporate them into our plays sometime. But that would mean we would need some great dancers as the leads in order to sell the play more! So! With that in mind, we came up with the idea of creating this competition, not only to see others' dance skills, but to think about leading roles for the future~"

Sally rambled on and on excitedly as I couldn't help but continue to stare at the flier, reading it. 'Foxtrot Dance Competition! Partner Required! Come test out your dancing skills! Winners get to be the star in the upcoming play!' The thought wasn't too bad! You didn't know how to dance much, you had some skill, but hey, the worst that could happen was that you would place last right? Deep in thought, Wally's voice broke you out of your thoughts.

"Thank you for the offer Sally, but I think both neighbor and I will have to de-"

"I'll do it!" You spoke with newfound excitement. It would give you something to do on these hot summer days and learn a new skill, there are no downsides!

Wally looked over at you, eyes widening. He looked at you with dilated pupils, but you couldn't help but smile excitedly. Sally couldn't either, she was beginning to shine even more than she already was! Grabbing both of my hands and pulling me up to jump up and down.

"Oh my goodness that's so exciting! Thank you neighbor I absolutely know you're going to do great and you are going to dance wonderfully and-" Sally kept on and on, jumping you in circles to the point you were almost dizzy.

Wally looked down at the flier again, contemplating before letting out a quiet sigh. What was he getting himself into? The sight of you with your wide smile though, was all that he could ask for. He loved seeing his friend smile.

"I'll join in too. You need a partner for these kinds of things, right? Neighbor, I'd like to enter with you as my partner if you don't mind~" He spoke, looking towards you with his signature smile. Your excitement only continued to grow as you grabbed Wally's hand.

"I'd absolutely love to! We are an unstoppable pair! This is going to be a breeze!"

"Well, you two better get to practicing then! The competition is the next Saturday, not this upcoming one!" Sally interrupted, tapping the flier to show the date.

"That's only...10 days away! Is that even enough time?" Wally asked, there was a hint of worry in his voice. "I don't know how to dance very well, in fact, I'm poor at it."

You never actually heard Wally admit he wasn't very good at something before, so that was a first. He was usually a confident guy, it may seem as if he was full of himself sometimes sure, but he always meant well. You couldn't help but smile.

"Well, what's the worst that'll happen Mr. Darling?"

He pondered that for a moment, shaking his head as he gave a lighthearted laugh. "Ha ha ha. Nothing too bad I guess now that I think about it! You're right neighbor. You always know how to view things positively. That's what makes you the most!"

You couldn't help but smile, as Sally looked between the two of you, a small smirk set across her face.

"Well, get to dancing you two! I want to see passion and sparks! Make my heart SOAR with your dancing! I have to tell others about this-"

"Haven't you already put fliers over the whole neighborhood?" You raised an eyebrow.

"That's barely enough! I have to get going!" Sally laughed and waved, grabbing her fliers when she spotted her next targets. With a cheerful smile, she ran towards Eddie and Frank. You could faintly hear in the distance her rambling on about the competition.

"God, does that girl ever know how to slow down?"

"Sometimes I wonder if she knows the meaning of slow."

You and Wally both looked at each other and laughed, holding the flier in your hand as you extended your other to Wally.

"Well 'Partner,' looks like you're stuck with me for the next 10 days! You ready to get your dancing shoes on?"

"You make it sound like being stuck with you is a bad thing! I'm delighted neighbor." He spoke, grabbing your hand as you lifted him off the ground and onto his feet. You couldn't help but smile at him, as you looked down at the flier once more, putting your hand to your chin as you began to pace back and forth.

"I need to make sure I have the appropriate attire, dance shoes for certain, we need to have lots of water, especially during this heatwave. Hmm...do you have a music disc? Or at least a slow-paced song?" You thought allowed, looking towards Wally who was thinking alongside you.

"I know I have one somewhere at Home, I might just have to go and dig for it is all! Other than that, I think we are as prepared as we could be. If we need to, we could always go to Howdy's Bugdega and ask for some supplies?"

"I might have to...I don't recall having any dancewear...I do know we need to start immediately! Tomorrow! After we get our supplies, let's get straight to dancing and see what we need to work on!!" You spoke enthusiastically, your hands on your hips as you had this smirk about you.

Wally couldn't help but roll his eyes and sigh a little at your disposition. It was too late to back out now, and he certainly wasn't going to. He couldn't help but remain cheery though.

"Well then neighbor, I do have a couple of things I need to do before then, like clean Home and find some records. So I will probably head back, as it is starting to become late anyways." Wally looked over to the sky, it was getting a bit late! Time always seemed to fly by when you were with each other.

You nodded and smiled, giving a little salute. "Well then Mr. Darling! I'll be at Home at nine am sharp! You better be prepared!" You half-joked, as you turned around, giving him a little wave as you began to walk back to your house.

"Be safe neighbor! I'll see you at nine am!" Wally smiled, waving goodbye as they headed back towards home.

As you began to walk home though, a pit of nervousness began to grow in your stomach. Dancing? You had no idea what you were doing! You've never slow-danced before, nonetheless been to a dance, unless you count dancing in your bedroom with the music turned up.

You sighed, making it to your home, opening the door, and heading inside, putting the flier on the kitchen counter, as you stared at it.

What did you get yourself into?

AUTHORS NOTE:

THIS IDEA MAKES ME SO SOFT!! I genuinely have about 10 chapters in mind, one for each day...so I hope you enjoy this neighbor!

Gentle Reminder I am a student and I am writing these when I can, finals are ROUGH!

You can also find this story on my wattpad!

[evolutionsbedingt]

I just realised that this is the perfect song for Li Lianhua, hiding himself from the jianghu and, later, Fang Duobing in particular, not planning on coming out until the time is right!

(Original, German lyrics and their English translation by me under the cut)

Du hast mich gesucht, heute Morgen am Meer

You have searched for me, this morning at the sea

Im Seetang und zwischen den Steinen

Among  the seaweed and between the stones

Doch fandest du nur einen silbernen Fisch

Yet you only found a silvery Fisch

Sein Tod ließ dich bitterlich weinen

His death made you weep bitterly

Du hast mich gesucht, in dem Haus auf dem Fels

You have searched for me, in the house on the cliff

Im Keller, in Zimmern und Kammern

In the cellar, in the rooms and nooks

Du fandest nur Staub, doch keinerlei Grund

You found only dust, no reason at all

Dich an deine Hoffnung zu klammern

To cling to your hope

Du kannst mich nicht finden, ich hab mich versteckt

You cannot find me, I have hidden myself

Ich hab deine Augen mit Schatten bedeckt

I have covered your eyes with shadows

Du kannst mich nicht finden, du kannst mich nicht sehen

You cannot find me, you cannot see me

Schließ deine Augen, zähl noch mal bis zehn

Close your eyes, count up to ten again

Du hast mich bei Freunden und Feinden gesucht

You have searched for me at friends' and foes'

Hast Dichter und Richter bestochen

Have bribed poets and judges

Doch diese und jene waren ratlos wie du

But these and those, like you, were at a loss

Nun zählst du die Tage und Wochen

Now you're counting the days and weeks

Du hast alle Hexen und Magier befragt

You have asked all witches and magicians,

Sie lasen in Kugeln und Sternen

They studied orbs and stars

Doch falsche Propheten die finden mich nie

But false prophets will never find me

Solange sie das Suchen nicht lernen

As long as they don’t learn to seek

Du kannst mich nicht finden, ich hab mich versteckt

You cannot find me, I have hidden myself

Ich hab deine Augen mit Schatten bedeckt

I have covered your eyes with shadows

Du kannst mich nicht finden, du kannst mich nicht sehen

You cannot find me, you cannot see me

Schließ deine Augen, zähl noch mal bis zehn

Close your eyes, count up to ten again

Such in allen Ecken, such hinter den Hecken

Lookin all corners, look behind the hedges

Ich werd mich verstecken und schweigen

I will hide myself and keep quiet

Schau über die Schulter, vielleicht bin ich da

Look over your shoulder, maybe I’ll be there

Zur rechten Zeit will ich mich zeigen

At the right time, I shall show myself

Du kannst mich nicht finden, ich hab mich versteckt

You cannot find me, I have hidden myself

Ich hab deine Augen mit Schatten bedeckt

I have covered your eyes with shadows

Du kannst mich nicht finden, du kannst mich nicht sehen

You cannot find me, you cannot see me

Schließ deine Augen, zähl noch mal bis zehn

Close your eyes, count up to ten again

[triscribeaucollection]

For the ask game, 🍄?

🍄 share a head canon for one of your favorite ships or pairings

So, I was on an intense PJO kick a month ago, mainly with regard to Percy & Thalia & Poseidon feels, but here's a brief thing I've got in mind concerning Sally/Poseidon:

It's about depth.

This is actually a headcanon tangled up with the other brothers as well, concerning what causes them each to form an attachment, however long or brief, to individual mortals. Hades has been interpreted a dozen different ways, yeah, and when Maria di Angelo was still alive back in the day, she was almost certainly a woman of many sides, living in dangerous, unprecedented times. Maybe a good woman just trying to survive, maybe an active participant in the war, but almost almost certainly more than what other people saw her as, with a complexity that the God of the Dead who receives so much mixed fear and respect could understand.

Zeus, though, is straight up attracted to surface beauty, no disputing that fact, Beryl Grace being the latest of many gorgeous women over the eons, who could go from clear, dazzling smiles to thunderous fury in a moment if the wrong person got on her nerves. At the time that he first saw/met/encountered her, Zeus has to have been chafing under the pact he and his brothers made, to sire no more children, and for an absolute ruler being restricted definitely stings. So he sees a stunning mortal, a movie star, constantly hiding how she grinds her teeth at both the big and little things, but still wielding what power she has gained for herself with unflinching determination to come out on top. And Zeus finds himself admiring that as much as her looks, hence being the first to break the pact and conceive Thalia (and later Jason via his Jupiter aspect).

Coming back to Poseidon, he appreciates good looks as much as the next god, but he's also the one who embodies the vast seas and all that's hidden beneath a calm or storming surface. Putting on masks to disguise and secret away one's true feelings, up until the point it all becomes too much and you need to release pent-up emotions, to go off on your own and hurl the mask away and let what's really there be exposed, even if only for a few moments. Water pulling back from shore, revealing the deep crevices and hidden creatures, before the waves come sweeping in once more, you pick yourself back up, and you keep going regardless of whatever shit life is still throwing your way.

And that's Sally Jackson, undoubtedly, even before her son is born and she starts taking steps and making sacrifices to keep him safe, relying only upon herself for so long.

"You don't want him at camp."

"No, no I don't."

"Tell me why."

"You don't want to know why."

"Probably not. But you have no one to say it to, and maybe that's the most unfair part of it."

...okay this turned into more of an analysis of the Big Three gods rather than a single headcanon about a pairing, but oh well x'D

[katblu42]

Passing the Big Brother Baton

Something brought this one to mind recently, so I thought I'd bring it out for another airing.

You can also find it here on AO3

** Please note ** For this story Virgil is older than John.

Lucy knew her nap was over when the shuffle of little feet on the carpet became loud enough to break through the drowsy fog.  The little hand on her belly proved the point, but the whispered words kept her eyes closed for a while longer.  Much of what her eldest son was saying was too incomprehensible for her sleepy mind to decipher, but she caught the gist.  The hand on her very pregnant belly was part of an explanation that a baby was in there.  The beginning of a very serious instructional talk.

“Going big bruh now,” three-and-a-half year-old Scott was telling his barely one year old brother. Lucy was awake enough for her brain to begin re-interpreting the baby-talk to mean “You’re going to be a big brother now.”

“Like me!” Scott continued.  “I you big bruh.  You baby big bruh.”

Lucy allowed her eyes to drift open a little, wanting to see how this information was being received, but not wanting to interrupt.  Scott was too focused on Virgil to notice she had woken.  She could just make out Virgil doing that little bounce on his chubby legs as he stood on the other side of Scott, with both hands holding on to her bed for stability.  A flicker of movement in the corner of her eye diverted her attention and she saw her mother-in-law tentatively look into the room, ready to shoo the boys away and let her sleep.  Lucy caught Sally’s eye and gave a slight shake of the head, which the older woman took as her cue to withdraw.  The instructions continued.

“Baby come soon.  I look (after) you. You look (after) baby.”  The word “after” wasn’t spoken, but Lucy was used to filling in the blanks.

The only response Lucy could discern from her vantage point was a slightly furrowed brow – Virgil’s serious expression, one he used when concentrating hard.

“Big bruh job.”  (Meaning “That’s a big brother’s job.”)  There was a pause and Scott’s hand moved onto Virgil’s shoulder.  “I help you.”

“Ba!” Virgil replied, rather loudly, with another bounce as he flexed his leg muscles.

Scott nodded.  Apparently that was the required response.  Instructions had been given and received, and with that Scott turned and headed for the door, with Virgil toddling after him.

Lucy stifled a giggle.  Her boys were precious.  She had no doubt the new baby would be well and truly doted on.

****

With the impending birth of a fourth little Tracy, bedroom re-allocation was required.  Lucy had struggled with the best way of broaching the subject with her three boys, but needn’t have worried.  She should not have been surprised when five-and-a-half year-old Virgil immediately suggested John could move into his room.  He further justified this as the best solution by adding that Scotty was the biggest so he should have his own room.

John seemed apprehensive at first, but Virgil’s enthusiasm for the idea was apparently a persuasive force.  She watched, and silently followed, as he took John ever so gently by the hand and led him to the room in question to show him how it would all work.

“Your bed can go there.  Under the big window.  Then you can see the stars before you go to sleep.” His hands gestured at each space in turn as he spoke, his eyes alight with the imagining.  “My bed can go over there – I don’t need the window.  Bookcase goes there.  You gots more books than me, so it hasta go close to your bed.  We can share my desk.  It’s got all my pencils and paints on it though.  Is that okay?”

From her half-hidden spot just outside the door she could see John nod, seeming a little bewildered, but not altogether displeased with the idea.

“I promise I won’t be too loud,” Virgil assured his four-and-a-half year-old brother, “and it’s a big room, so you’ll still have lots of space all to yourself.”

Virgil must have seen or sensed something in John’s mood that she could not from out in the hall.  He sat on his bed, facing the window, and patted the space beside him, inviting John to sit to his left.

“I know lotsa things are changing right now.” There was a slow gravity to Virgil’s tone, so different to the rushed excitement of a moment ago.  “It’s gonna be okay, though.”

Virgil stretched his arm behind his brother’s shoulders, but waited until John leaned in against his side before letting his hand rest on the younger boy’s left arm in a gentle hug.

“You’re gonna be a big brother now,” Virgil said softly, “just like me and Scotty.  Big brothers gotta look after littler ones.  Scott looks after me sometimes.  I look after you.  You look after the baby when he comes.  But we’ll help you, too.”

“What about Mommy and Daddy?”

“They got lots of grown-up things they gotta worry about.  That’s why being a big brother’s so important.  Mommy and Daddy will look after all of us, but we can help them if we look after our little brother.  I gotta look after Scotty sometimes too, ‘cuase he doesn’t got a big brother.”

“Do you think I'll be a good big brother?"

Virgil nodded, and Lucy noticed the extra squeeze in the embrace.

"You're gonna be a great big brother.  And if you need any extra help you ask me, or Scotty and we'll help you."

"Okay," John said, visibly relaxing.  “I’m gonna help lots when the baby comes.  And I’ll help you look after Scotty too.”

Virgil gave an emphatic nod.

“Scott needs a lot of looking after.”

Lucy had to walk away before the laughter she was so desperately trying to stifle could burst out in a snort.

****

Gordon had just turned four, and with a new baby on the way the family had inevitably been throwing around the “big boy now” comments.  Lucy had been careful to involve Gordon in the necessary process of setting up the nursery furniture in the room he would soon be sharing, worried that he might resent the impending invasion.  Unlike any of the other boys, Gordon seemed reluctant to step into big brotherhood.  For over a week now he’d been very clingy, wanting cuddles with Mom on the flimsiest of pretexts, and needing Mommy’s (or, to a lesser extent Daddy’s) help with tasks that he had more than mastered.

Lucy was wondering what challenges today would bring when there was a commotion in the kitchen – a clattering of kid-safe plates, cups and bowls as though someone was rummaging through cupboards and spilling items out onto countertop and floor tiles.  Gordon had just gone in there.  With a sigh, Lucy heaved herself to her feet to see what was happening.  Before she reached the kitchen door the sound of John’s voice prompted her to stop and listen.

“What are you looking for?” the eight-and-a-half year-old enquired with a patience Lucy was sure she could not have mustered.

“My sippy cup,” came the simple reply, accompanied by more rummaging and clattering.

“Why?”

“For my juice.”  Lucy could hear the exasperated sigh in Gordon’s voice suggesting this was the most obvious thing in the world, despite him not needing his sippy cup in well over a year.

“I was going to pour yours into a cup just like mine.” 

Lucy was relieved her perceptive third child had been smart enough to avoid the term “big-boy cup.”  The use of similar terms had been enough to induce tantrums over the last few days.

There were footsteps and a cupboard door squeaked open as John apparently went and retrieved Gordon’s sippy cup from the corner cupboard used to store all the retired-until-further-notice toddler items.  Juice was poured, the lid popped on and the cup was slid across the countertop, presumably towards Gordon who had more than likely climbed up to sit on a stool opposite his big brother.

“You know, just because you won’t be the littlest anymore doesn’t mean Mom and Dad don’t love you just as much as they always did.”

Lucy was not surprised John was able to pinpoint the problem behind Gordon’s regressive behaviour, but she was impressed that he was able to articulate it so well, and that he was willing to address the issue head on.  There was no answer from Gordon, and she found herself imagining him trying to process what John had said, probably with head slightly tilted to one side and a squinty frown.

“I was the littlest before you were born,” John said solemnly, and perhaps with a hint of nostalgia.

“Really?”  The shock in Gordon’s voice had Lucy visualising his russet eyes widening.  “But you’ve always been big!”

John laughed.  A quiet, contented, closed mouth, chesty sound that Lucy always loved to hear.

“That’s because I’m older than you.  And I’ll always be older than you.  I’ll always be your big brother, just like Scott and Virgil will always be my big brothers, and all of us, including you, will be the baby’s big brother.”

“I don’t wanna be a big brother.”  Lucy heard the pout, and the crossed arms in Gordon’s words.

“Why not?”

“Don’t wanna be sponstible.  Wanna do fun stuff with Mommy, like before.  Just me and Mommy.  No baby.”

Lucy felt the prickle of tears in the corners of her eyes.  John let out a sigh.

“Yeah, it kinda sucks that you don’t really get to choose to be a big brother.  It just happens and you’re stuck with it.  And it is a big responsibility.  You need to look out for the little one, make sure they’re safe – like when I had to stop you from crashing the toboggan into the garage. You have to help them with things they can’t do yet – like I just helped you get a drink of juice.  But being a big brother can be pretty cool.  If you help mum look after the baby you’ll still get to spend time with her too.  And you can play with the baby sometimes.  Then when he gets bigger you get to teach him stuff.”

“Like what?”

“Well, the baby isn’t going to know anything about the world, or how things work, or being a Tracy.  He’ll watch you and learn from you – even when you don’t know it.  And when he’s old enough you’ll get to answer all his questions – like I answered when you asked me about how tadpoles turn into frogs.  You’ll be able to teach him important things like where all the best hiding spots in the house are, and not to steal grandma’s cookies.  Stuff Mom and Dad might not know, and stuff they might be too busy to help with – that’s the kind of big brother stuff you’ll need to do.”

There was a pause, and a soft shuffling and rustling of clothing.  Lucy thought John might have moved around the kitchen counter so he could put an arm around his little brother, or a comforting hand on his back with a gentle rub.

“You don’t have to do it all yourself.  That’s the best part about being a Tracy – we stick together, we all help each other.  You have three big brothers you can come to whenever you need to.”

Lucy wished she could see her boys at that moment, barely holding herself back from entering the kitchen just to see their expressions, to see the demonstration of exactly the big brotherly love John was speaking of.  She could hear the gentle scrape and clacking of cups that suggested the boys were sipping their drinks, perhaps even toasting the moment, before cups were tapped back down onto the countertop.

“I’ll tell you a secret,” she heard John quietly continue.  “I wasn’t sure how I felt about being a big brother at first.”  This was news to Lucy, and she wondered if she had missed something that she should have seen four years ago.  “But as soon as Mom and Dad brought you home I knew I would do anything to make you happy and keep you safe.”

“You didn’t want to be my big brother?”  The teariness in Gordon’s voice was heart-wrenching.

“I changed my mind really quick.  I found out having a little brother is the best feeling in the world.  There’s nothing like the way you looked up at me when I held you in my arms, or the feel of your tiny hand wrapped around my finger.  And you were fun to play with, especially when you were big enough to laugh.”

“I’m still fun to play with!” Gordon insisted, then doubt crept into his voice.  “Will you still play with me after the baby’s born?”

“Of course.”  John laughed again, this time a bright chuckle.

It seemed the serious conversation was over and the long silence prompted Lucy to begin to withdraw.  As she walked away she heard the beginnings of a whole new discussion.

“Are we sure the baby’s gonna be a boy?” Gordon asked

“Yeah, Mom and Dad and the doctor are all pretty sure.  Why?”

“Do you think I could ask if we could have a sister instead?” As curious as Lucy was to hear how John would handle that one, she kept walking, unable to stop the broad smile spreading across her face, and the swelling of absolute love in her heart for all her boys.

[syncrovoid-presents]

Good morning! There is a secret place on the welcome home website- On the exhibition page one of the Answer words is clickable! It takes you to a picture that you can click and then a safe! The password is the answers to the hand out from the exhibition page asking who is the funniest character and who is the star etc. etc.

DISCOVERED HIDDEN PASSWORD PROTECTED PAGE OF THE NEW WELCOME HOME UPDATE

Here's my second attempt at answering this. SO first I had to check out if this is true or not, and I can confirm that it's real! Thanks for this!

HOW TO GET THERE:

On the Playfellow Exhibition page the "answer" to select is the last "answer" in the third paragraph (aka the last paragraph in italics). Depending on if you're viewing on a computer or not, this is on the lefthand side of the paragraph. Selecting it will bring you to this webpage called "password please" (clownillustration.com/crack-the-code).

This is super interesting! And it has many-a handy clues. Clicking on the image will bring you to another secret page, and this one is of a safe where each number of the keypad is replaced with members from Welcome Home. (clownillustration.com/password-please). Clicking on the safe prompts you to enter a password, and this handy sheet points you the right direction! The password is hidden in the answers to the 5 questions in the character worksheet in the Playfellow Exhibitions page. The answers are the following (in this order): Barnaby, Sally, Poppy, Julie, and Wally. The password is the first letter of each name, which is then: BSPJW

This is the page you're greeted to when you enter the password! It's got so much going on, but you cannot enter without the password.

OVERVIEW

Here's a list of the first things I noticed when going through this new page:

The W is out of place and moving. This could possibly be part of another series of out of place characters of a mystery?

The two blue eyes are still on the furthest left and right margins if you zoom out. This is consistent for most of the pages, possibly which ones Wally has influence/has a presence in?

The title of the page is written 5 times and there are two overlapping texts of "Can you hear me?"

The black lines overlapping the text of the page isn't just black lines but also text! Most of them are "Ring-ring. Ring. Hello? Can you hear me? Call back soon, please."

The last black line overlapping the text reads as "Ring. Ring ring. Ring. Won't you please pick up?"

The reason why they all look different is because they're different font sizes and because they have spaces elongating them too.

A few of the lines are split into multiple sections within the source code of the site, but are displayed as one. Unknown if this is stylistic or has other meaning.

There are pulsing orbs on the page! The first one on the right hand side covers the letters "bu". Unknown if this means anything, but is interesting.

The bottom of the page has a clickable text bubble of "It's in here". The 'i' of "in" is out of place. Maybe another character that's important? Clicking this just sends you to the error page, nothing special seems to happen there.

There is a slideshow of a different sort of Playfellow Exhibition! I will get to these later.

FILE NAMES

This is a fun little section checking to see if the names of the graphics of the site have any further meaning. I'll break them down in a list here.

The rotating W is called "Dizzy.gif" in the website code.

The rest of the "Welcome Home" title graphic is called "ElcomeHome.png"

Interestingly the blue drawn eye graphics out of bounds on the site are called "open..gif" in the code. Strange name!

The black pulsing dots come in two variations. The darker ones are called "coming2.gif" in the code while some are under a title section called "sit.gif" (they are still called "coming2.gif" within that. I thought that was interesting though! If taken as a scene, the black dots in "sit.gif" would be a sun)

The black swirls/clouds on the bottom are called "Hmm.png"

The black swirls/clouds on the top are called "hm.png"

The border patterns on each side are called "sneezing.png". Strange? This one sticks out as odd to me, compared to the rest.

The black "speech bubble" doesn't seem to actually have a specific word-name. Might be wrong on this, but if not I think that'd be interesting too, where everything gets word names except for the place that words should go. Funny!

TEXT

This is a direct transcript of what the page says, as it may be hard for some people to read.

"I had a dream when I began working on the Playfellow Exhibition. Wally Darling was sitting at the foot of my bed with a rotary phone in front of him, ringing away. It looked just like the little toy phone we were restoring for the exhibit. It kept ringing. Wally stared at me like he was waiting for me to pick up the phone. Just staring, unblinking. The phone ringing and ringing. I couldn't move. I couldn't figure out how to move and pick up the phone. He kept waiting. I couldn't pick up the phone. I keep getting phone calls, now. Or at least, I assume that's what's happening. I keep hearing it ringing. All day, sometimes. I check my phone and there's no new messages. I thought maybe some of the site staff were pranking me, but I tore up the workspace and couldn't find another phone that might be ringing. All that was there were the toys for the exhibit, and obviously those couldn't be ringing. But I kept hearing it anyway. The phone ringing and ringing. The more I work, the more questions I have. Why didn't any of the site staff I worked with remember this show? Even the ones who grew up in the 70s? Why can't I find any files on the Playfellow Workshop? Why isn't there a single TV guide ad saying what network or time the show was on? I keep digging and digging. I've poured over every recovery the WHRP has given me access to, every inch of their website, and the things I find make less and less sense. If I didn't know better I'd say everyone was coming together to pull an elaborate prank on me. I can still hear the phone ringing now. I don't know how to answer the phone. I need to answer the phone."

This is from what I believe is a new character in the Welcome Home universe. Not really a character in the show, but someone I'll be calling the Restorer. They are the one being tasked to restore the stuff sent to WHRP. This will become more relevant later on, but to break it down this is giving insight on the behind-the-scenes, and brings back the motif of the phone ringing. These I'll expand upon later. Also important to note, the "I need to the answer the phone" overlaps the gallery so it's very hard to make out, possibly a sign of internal struggle or not necessarily wanting to answer the phone but needing to regardless.

Letters out of place that I notices: w, i, [b or bu]. Putting in combinations of this in the top doesn't reveal anything new that I've found.

THE GALLERY

The gallery is very interesting! There is in total 24 images so I won't go too in depth with each, but I will go semi-in depth as there's lots of interesting things going on! And for MOST of them if you hover over them there is a transcript if text is within the image. This isn't the case for all of them, but majority is transcribed.

The first image is called "wall.PNG". It's actually one that I think stands out compared to the rest. Perhaps this is the entrance, perhaps it's the exit. It's the only one that doesn't get shown again later, other than the brief view of the black-grown wall. (if that wall is indeed the same as the one in others, it shows the height of the black growth).

The second image is called "chair.png". It is of a workspace. The orange sticky notes on the bottom have various spirals. IT's interesting to point out that in the left of the image there are cleaning supplies (or paint? both? it's hard to make out but I think it's cleaning supplies). Implies that whoever works here also much clean it.

The third image is called "ceiling.PNG". This one is really interesting and also doesn't appear in any other image. The eye appears to match almost exactly the eye under Home in the Neighbourhood page of the website, which leads to the "so-below". Eyes are an important motif, and it appears almost like the sticky notes with spirals drawn on them are "leaking" out of the black growth. Also interesting that it's taken up residence within the casing of a fluorescent light. These are often in schools or work buildings, implying that this is likely not happening in someone's basement. Also the the fact that it's coming where light should be is quite interesting too. Fascinating!!

The fourth image is called "button.png". It's a closeup of the desk, and shows off a few things that's there. Strangely the apple doesn't look real? Compared to the rest it looks like it was painted on. There is also black string coming out of the box of pens and markers and the sticky note and pen is the same as what has drawn some of the spirals. If I'm not mistaken Wally has yellow buttons in him, but not white. Unknown what that might mean, bit it's interesting! The container of vinyl gloves also has a sticky note that we can read in a different image. There is also a (discarded?) do not touch sign, likely for the growth on the walls or for reminding the Restorer not to touch stuff without gloves.

The fifth image is called "box.png". This a printed email sent to the WHRP by Questions Answered!. It's talking about the worksheet and code to enter the safe, ironically what we had to crack to get here. Possibly in-universe the code for the safe is something else. This shows up multiple times. Also, like other printed emails, it reveals this is taking place in 2023 (march and april to be exact!). This can be used to create a timeline of the emails (and events).

The sixth image is called "apple.png" and again, that appble doesn't look real. That might just be a me thing though. This is another shot of the desk and reveals a letter in the far right and vinyl gloves covered in the black growth on the walls. The sticky note on the gloves read "PUT ON GLOVES BEFORE HANDLING ANY ART. CALL ME IF WE RUN OUT!!!".

The seventh image is called "whoareyou.png". This one has the image of Frank with the red square (red is a colour tied to Wally). There is a blacklight message of "WHO ARE YOU?" with a drawing of a spiral and an eye, two symbols connected to Wally. Unknown if this is directed at the Restorer or at Frank. The yellow sticky note says "-IS ART WAS NOT... THE SHIPMENT... EASE STOP USING... WORK PRINTER.... PRANK ME >:(". Likely is read as "This art was not part of the shipment. Please stop using the work printer to prank me >:(". This is the same sticky note and writing style as the Restorer, so it's likely written by them.

The eighth image is called "corner.png" and it is of the corner of the room, a zoomed out image of "apple.png" and "button.png". It reveals that there's also a paint roller, a blacklight, four letters, two notebooks, a TV, toy phone and clock, an image on the wall and further black growth on the walls. Also has the same orange sticky notes/papers on the floor as the first image, proving that they must be taken within the same room/space. If so, all images here are from the one singular room, possibly all taken by the Restorer.

The ninth image is called "favorite.png". This is very very interesting because it's the only one containing a question answered directly by WHRP (asked by Question Answer!). It's asking about the WHRP experience researching and uncovering information about Welcome Home, but the blacklight reads as "Everything is so disgusting to touch. Sometimes the mail doesn't come for weeks. I want to rip into everything I have. My head feels so muddled too. Ever since I opened that envelope." The envelope is a direct callback to another page that mentions that the first information about Welcome Home came to WHRP in the forms of colourful envelopes (also used within the Welcome Home world). The blacklight message contradicts the printed response by WHRP. Implies that someone within the company OR from Question Answer! is covering up the actual working conditions for the Restorer and whoever writes the blacklight message (I do not think they're the same person(s)).

The tenth image is called "light.png". This is of the blacklight, strangely there are black strings or tendrils coming out of the blacklight (similar to the pen/marker box and of the black and white eye in the florescent light. Possibly the same growth as on the walls?). The sticky note reads "ATTENTION: ALL STAFF. CHECK ART WITH BLACKLIGHT BEFORE HANGING/PACKING/CLEANING/ETC. NEED PHOTOS FOR CONDITION REPORTS AND/AT WHRP TEAM!!!". This is written by whoever wrote the sticky note for the gloves, and doesn't look to be the same handwriting as the Restorer. In the top right you can see a part of another printed email (same as we see in other images).

The 11th image is called "mail.PNG". It's more printed emails, with the topmost having a transcript. The one on the right is dated April 13th and says "... out so promptly! I wasn't expecting them to arrive... value of these prizes for insurance?) - there actually... at all, could you send that so we can open the box... if that's easier!.... ration". Another email from Question Answer! and is about the safe prize again. The topmost email is about the upcoming exhibition and dated april 3rd, implying that the Restorer was able to restore a lot of pieces for the official exhibition, though still wants more to happen?

The 12th image is called "note.png". It's an orange stickynote with a drawn phone with two eyes. Looks like it's drawn in blacklight, possibly another message from whoever is doing that. The image was taken on the same desk the Restorer works on. Further proof that the blacklight writer and Restorer are not the same person(s).

The 13th image is called "notebook.PNG". This is written by the Restorer about the recent notebooks received from the WHRP. The Restorer mentions that it feels like it is all a prank and shoes desperation to find the answers. Doesn't look like the same hand writing as the sticky notes with instructions on them. Important that the phone is ringing! Also important that they say that the WHRP sent ONE notebook, so this notebook (yellowed pages with pargins and lines) belongs to the Restorer.

The 14th image is called "notebooks.png". This is of two notebooks, the one that the WHRP sent and the Restorer's notebook. The red one with the eye and spiral is from the WHRP while the yellow is from the Restorer. Interesting that it has a question mark and A on it, possibly implying that the Restorer works for Question Answer! and not directly with the WHRP team? The spiral and eye are in theme with Wally, and there is a bookmark with a Poppy like pattern sticking out. The notes are written by the Restorer, which means I might be wrong and the Restorer has been writing the rest of the notes too? Interesting! There's also a script that's too hard to read, and another sticky note with a spiral and a small doodle.

The 15th image is called "papers.png" and is of the papers on the ground, confirmed to not be sticky notes. They all have spirals on them, and are placed just before the desk in the room. Also the floors appear to be concrete?

The 16th image is called "Read.png". It's of the notebook that the WHRP team sent (on loan!). Interesting that the space around it is darkened while most of the images don't have that.

The 17th image is called "Bookopen.png". Unknown if this is inside the notebook sent by WHRP or the notebook owned by the Restorer. It has a doodle of a Home-like house with "The ... That ..." in it. The heart below has "You You" in it. The black marks could have been already there or recently placed there, unknown if they're fingers or more black growth (implication that the black growth came from the Welcome Home objects?). There are two drawings mostly covered by the open book, one that has an eye.

The 18th image is called "Booknow.png". It has a drawing on the left (same drawing that was under the notebook in "Bookopen.png". It also has a wally-like handpint in the bottom right, possibly implying this doodle is from Wally himself?). The right has an note written by the Restorer. It's hard to make out, but appears to generally be about their work on the project. Below is my attempt at making it more legible, but it's still too blurry to really read. Restorer notably does not give their name, and seems to be writing this to another person.

9. The 19th image is named "research.png". It's a zoom up of a sticky note written by the Restorer that was attached to the WHRP notebook. The blacklight reads "THE PHONE IS RINGING". 10. The 20th image is named "room.png" and is another image of the room, this time zoomed out further. Reveals that the handprints on the wall are human like (4 fingers and a thumb, not 3 fingers) which confirms Wally is not here @:P

The 21st image is called "safe.png". It is a picture of the second chair that has a photograph of Wally and the same safe that is seen when entering this hidden page. Interesting!

The 22nd image is called "sheet.png" and is of the same letter that is seen in another image (same letter that was cut off in the image "mail.PNG". The hidden blacklight text reads "WALLY DARLING" and the note is about the safe code. The email subject is asking about the safe code, and clarifies that the mail is about the activity prize being sent out in a lockbox. The insurance line is about what the prizes were, and the code to unlock the lockbox is within the activity worksheet. The sticky note is offering to send prizes at a later date once they can actually open the lockbox/safe. Dated april 13th.

The 23rd image is called "tv.png". It's the same TV as the one hidden page video with the strange audio, and appears to be severely outdated for 2023. This implies that the TV video was taken by the Restorer, who considers the TV broken. There are more handprints on the wall, and the phone is now on the phone holder instead of being out (no one has tried answering). It's also 5:20.

The 24th image is called "sorry.png". It is of an email from april 3rd. It's the same one we've seen elsewhere and the blacklight message says "I am so sorry.". Appears to be in response to the email, though it's unclear whether it's responding to being told that certain things cannot be touched, or that there is the black stuff growing on the walls. Also confirms that the black stuff on the walls isn't paint (or is not being painted on) but instead is growing on it's own. The sender of the email (Question Answer!) tells the receiver that they should not be considered if they experience nausea, dizziness or fatigued. Such lovely working conditions!

The 21st image is called "safe.png". It is a picture of the second chair that has a photograph of Wally and the same safe that is seen when entering this hidden page. Interesting!

The 22nd image is called "sheet.png" and is of the same letter that is seen in another image (same letter that was cut off in the image "mail.PNG". The hidden blacklight text reads "WALLY DARLING" and the note is about the safe code. The email subject is asking about the safe code, and clarifies that the mail is about the activity prize being sent out in a lockbox. The insurance line is about what the prizes were, and the code to unlock the lockbox is within the activity worksheet. The sticky note is offering to send prizes at a later date once they can actually open the lockbox/safe. Dated april 13th.

The 23rd image is called "tv.png". It's the same TV as the one hidden page video with the strange audio, and appears to be severely outdated for 2023. This implies that the TV video was taken by the Restorer, who considers the TV broken. There are more handprints on the wall, and the phone is now on the phone holder instead of being out (no one has tried answering). It's also 5:20.

The 24th image is called "sorry.png". It is of an email from april 3rd. It's the same one we've seen elsewhere and the blacklight message says "I am so sorry.". Appears to be in response to the email, though it's unclear whether it's responding to being told that certain things cannot be touched, or that there is the black stuff growing on the walls. Also confirms that the black stuff on the walls isn't paint (or is not being painted on) but instead is growing on it's own. The sender of the email (Question Answer!) tells the receiver that they should not be considered if they experience nausea, dizziness or fatigued. Such lovely working conditions!

Some images have the png in capitals and some don't. Is that important? I do not know!

THOUGHTS/SUMMARY

So what do we know? We know for sure that there is someone I'm dubbing the "Restorer" that works within this room. They are the one that took the pictures (most likely) and they are the ones restoring much of the stuff being sent by the WHRP team. They do not work directly for the WHRP but possibly for Question Answer!. There is another unknown person who is leaving messages only seen under blacklight.

The Question Answerer from the Playfellow Exhibition page of the website is likely either part of or is the head curator of Question Answerer!, the person that all the emails are talking to. They are the ones that have given the WHRP team the ability to set up the exhibition and given either funding, time, resources, or a combination thereof for the WHRP to continue their research. They know about the poor conditions of the room and do not care. It's likely that they are the ones that are "censoring" the messages the public gets about the WHRP and Restorer, as the text from the image called "favorite.png" says that the WHRP is very happy to work on the restoration (contradicts the blacklight) and the Question Answerer quotes from the exhibition page is all positive.

It's very interesting that all the emails are printed, we never get to see the actual people talking. We know it's conversations between the WHRP team (from the email address) and the head curator of Question Answer!, but we just see emails to Question Answer!, not from WHRP (other than sending a png of the worksheet). This also shows another interesting thing that the Restorer is given a huge lack of technology for their work, it's actually a huge lack of anything for the restoration work. There is some cleaning supplies in the corner, a box of pens and markers, gloves and a few tools, but majority of what they have is sticky notes and the black-growth health hazard. If I'm not mistaken, the TV might be the same as what would have been available back between 1969 and 1974, implying that the technology that is there is stuff that would have been around during Welcome Home's airing.

THEORY

After going through everything, here is my theory. Might contradict a few points I made above, but it's too long for me to go back. Plus that allows for more variations of interpretation haha.

I have a theory that the blacklight messages may be by someone in the WHRP team but not the Restorer. It apologizes for the poor working conditions, complains/reveals the truth of the working conditions, and asks general questions and mentions they too hear the ringing. If so, that would be more proof that there is separation between the WHRP and the Restorer.

In a similar train of thought, it's possible that instead of Question Answerer being the Question Answer! head curator, it's "supposed" to be the Restorer, but their messages have been "censored". The proof for this would be in the exhibition page, where it says "Question Answerer has taken great care in preserving these findings and helping to reproduce what couldn't be properly presented. They have also helped us to restore what was assumed to be completely destroyed [...]" and "It seems like everything these days is already neatly catalogued and answered down to the finest details. You can find a book or a website or what-have-you to answer any old question that might cross your mind. But Welcome Home was different! The more I looked at it, the more questions there were, and not an answer in sight. It was like a puzzle-box that had never been opened before, just begging to be investigated. How could I possibly resist a mystery like that - especially in a charming, colorful package! It was like a calling. A calling I just had to answer!"

Question Answerer is called that here because they're anonymous, another point that it could be the Restorer. Everything quoted there is variations of what is said on the hidden page version of the exhibition. They are the one working to preserve and restore separate from the WHRP team, and the rest is positive versions of what the Restorer has written or implied. The mystery being exciting and unique is a positive way of what the Restorer wrote about them being unable to find any proof of the show other than what they're sent. The puzzle-box could be the lockbox/safe that needs to be opened. The "charming colorful package" is another reference to how originally much of the Welcome Home proof was sent in colourful envelopes. The calling that "[they] just hand to answer" is in parallel to "I can still hear the phone ringing now. I don't know how to answer the phone. I need to answer the phone."

This lines up with the emails, that are sent to the curator, and the Restorer's personal notebook that has the questionmark and the A on the from, likely representing "Question Answerer". Only issue is that it seems that Question Answerer contacted the WHRP, and though the Restorer has shown desperation towards needing to find the answers "There has to be answers. There has to be. I'll find answers, people need me to have answers" but they also mention that they think it's a prank at multiple points, which doesn't sound like someone that would have contacted the WHRP first. That sounds more like someone that was drawn into it and then stuck in the position.

FINAL POINTS

Wally has been tied to eyes and spirals multiple times now, though more-so eyes. He is also tied to the ringing and to the TV static video. It seems like Wally is trying to contact the Restorer/Question Answerer, further proven by the messages left on the hidden webpage from Wally asking if he can be heard. Some of the blacklight messages have eyes and in the notebook sent by WHRP there is a Wally-handprint (not the first time Wally's hand has been seen somewhere). Is this proof that Wally is sending stuff from the WHRP? I'm unsure, but that is another theory! It would explain why that after all the ringing he now is trying to communicate through blacklights. Counterpoint: there is a note written to the Restorer/Question Answerer about checking for blacklight messages. That seems odd to me.

Does the eye in the cieling represent that Wally is aware and/or watching the restoration efforts? Is the black growth growing more that Welcome Home is uncovered, or is it from something else? Why hasn't the Restorer moved work places?

Additional thoughts: Wally is neither good nor bad, he is shown more as an outside force that wants attention rather than anyone behaving in a purposefully malicious way. If it's true that the black growth and the Restorer's nightmare/impossible need to the answer the phone is caused by Wally, he isn't doing it purposefully, or at least there's no proof. So far he sits beyond a moral assignment, at least that's how I see it. Also while the Eyes are symbolic of Wally's presence (or at least it's heavily implied through other hidden messages throughout the site) it isn't confirmed that the spirals are. The spirals could be something else. After all not all spirals are paired with eyes and not all eyes are paired with spirals!

I also would like to mention that as stated before entering the Welcome Home Website that the warnings of the site includes that it includes an exploration of topics like death, isolation, and mental health. I will expand upon this in another post, but here's some basic thoughts.

The room the Restorer is working in is isolated, almost to an absurd degree. They are sent tasks and expected to perform them through printed emails, meaning they do not get to answer. They have a toy phone, not a real one. They have an old non-functioning TV. The Restorer mentions that they think this is all a prank, and anyone they have talked to know nothing of Welcome Home. The growth on the wall could symbolize corruption, whether that be corruption from the original goal or corruption of one's health (dizziness, nausea, fatigue, those all can also be caused by isolation and poor mental health). I won't go further into it as that would make this post even more ridiculously long, but I thought it was something to introduce into the discussion of the new update.

Good bye for now!