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scratchandplaster · 1 year ago

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Tales of Arcadia - A new beginning

CW: insects, Sam bullying Ben with invasive questions, amnesia

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・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

Ben held on like a vice. It wasn't fair of Dad to leave this early in the morning, especially not without any prior warning.

"I'll be back in two days tops, so I need someone to keep the team in order," Shepard laughed and tried to pull away from the avid embrace, "Otherwise I come back and everything is upside-down."

His son was neither used to nor keen on being the man of the house, clinging to his waist without mercy. It just wasn't fair!

"Send someone else to pick the new tools up then."

"We need to get this done before another storm blows us away. And when you want something done right, you have to do it-"

"-yourself. I know, Dad!" Ben huffed sadly and hugged his dad extra tight before untangling himself, a queasy pull beneath his heart didn't like to be separated so promptly. If asked, Ben would certainly deny how he tried to squirm away from his old life just a few days ago. Especially now, when everything just felt like it belonged exactly where it stood.

"And who else is capable enough to show Sam around, hmm? They have been dying for a tour." Shepard ruffled Ben's hair one last time: "I'll be back in a heartbeat."

He promptly waved goodbye to anyone who was up and busy on the campground already. As everyone returned the gesture, Shepard smiled contently and slipped into the driver's side of Otis' battered pickup truck. He lowered his voice when beckoning Reuben closer through the open window.

"Sam might ask you plenty of questions and that's fine. I'm counting on it. They think we are a bit odd, so if you could make them familiar with our daily routine, I would be very pleased by that."

Ben didn't care to hide his annoyed scowl: "Okay, I guess."

"If they do act up or say anything you don't like, send them to Birdie. Worst case: she'll kick them out."

Without any further hurdles, Shepard once again excused himself under the promise to return swiftly. He didn't worry about whether Ben stayed in place - this tic had been thoroughly dealt with. His son waved after him for a while as the truck drove down the gravel path and up to the familiar country roads.

The queasiness only grew.

--------

"Hi, Ben!"

His hike downhill came to a surprised halt as Ben's focus was caught on a familiar shape: Sam, copper hair just as radiant as the morning sunlight, leaned against the cabin.

This would certainly be interesting. To examine the prodigal son far away from any watchful eyes could be the breach they searched for; the quick chat with his father had turned out virtually worthless: "So, what do you want to show me?"

They were in a good mood, Ben noticed, like they didn't casually play him for a fool the other day. The resentment oozing from his every pore felt pathetically childish: it had been right that he came back to his family, so there was no real reason for his upset. Still, he kept a tasteful distance.

"Well, what do you want to see?" Ben asked, curt and reserved, his stiff attitude not staying unnoticed.

Sam sized him up, starting at the navy-blue sweater with a manta ray on the chest. God, this was way more atrocious than his clubbing outfit - no wonder they were able to spot him so quickly in a metropolis. Not planning on wasting any more thought on the yokel's new clothes, they instead forced a smile: "Let's start with everything."

Everything turned out to be a meadow, primarily, grass on grass corralled by mixed woodland and a small stream at the far end of it. A cluster of tepees occupied the largest chunk of the area: six of them forming a circle with one in the middle, safely guarded from all sides and the community tent at the northern fringe of it. For all Sam cared, this looked like any regular camping site.

Bullshit! There had to be more to this hippie utopia: the shrine of an ancient harvest god behind the washrooms, screams of occult choirs choked out by peaceful chirping.

Ben led them further across the pasture towards the barn and a patch of short grass enclosed by wire fence where chickens, rabbits, and sheep happily grazed together. Picturesque scenery impressed Sam only on rare occasions.

"Why rabbits of all things?" they wondered instead, squinting into the distant fields to catch of any other possible livestock.

"Easy to breed, easy to - uhm...process, sadly."

"You eat these?!" They gawked in disbelief. Jeez, as long as they didn't plan on doing it to them...

"Sometimes, but mainly, they are our eager fluffy lawnmowers," Ben clarified and let his gaze wander across the landscape, "Otherwise, the tics would be all over us by now."

Animal cruelty as a lead story always brought in new listeners, but in the context of this alternative milieu, Sam doubted anybody's genuine outrage. No, they should rather uncover something solid.

The early birds that were already outside gave them friendly smiles and scurried across the lawn as being led by an invisible hand. Everyone had their place, helping wherever it was needed inside this manageable ecosystem: chatting, preparing food or folding laundry.

Past the rustic warehouse and workshop located far away from the rest of the settlement and locked shut, a strange exception Sam noticed quickly, Ben described the most important workstations curtly before hurrying over to the next. At this pace, Sam was better off turning this interview into a speed date to keep their not at all enthusiastic guide alert.

As they passed the gurgling stream per stone bridge to the other side, conifers stole nearly all the sunlight away. Standing proud above the dark grass that no rabbit had ever touched, only strings of dewdrops surrounded the pair now.

Ben's first chore of the day approached. Sam could hear a sudden uproar in the air: the all-embracing buzz of a bee farm. Six white boxes were stacked randomly along the brookside, frantically dancing and working bees surrounded them, only interested in offering their lot.

The buzzing turned louder and louder with every step until Sam decided to stay comfortably distanced from them: "Don't you need like a suit? Or smoke, at least?"

"No, they still remember me." Yearning settled deep in Ben's voice. So careful in handling the single wooden frames and their golden-brown honeycomb, the hive greeted him by crawling over his face and hands. None of them were ready to sacrifice their lives in the face of the new guests, the light hum remained peaceful.

It didn't surprise Sam that Shepard wanted him back: he acted like the perfect poster child for this whole charade. Yet, his circumstances were much more interesting than honeybees.

"Where's your mother? She doesn't seem to live here."

"That doesn't concern you," Ben murmured instantly.

"Fair enough. Is Shepard Cohen your real father or is it like a spiritual commitment?" A Ben Cohen didn't exist in any register they searched in, neither did a Benjamin, Benson, Bennet or Benedict Cohen under the age of thirty. Whoever the man in front of them claimed to be, he definitely wasn't pleased by this question.

If Sam didn't know him better, they'd nearly expect to earn a handful of bees to the face. Ben was furious: "You are so rude! I can't believe I wanted to sleep with somebody like you."

Sam snorted with laughter: "Okay, that was blunt. You didn't give me a satisfying answer, though."

He let his silence speak for itself, carefully taking the different frames out of the hive and inspecting them. No parasites were visible and out to disturb the little critters' home life; only a big one to his left.

Ben didn't know many journalists or whatever Sam tried to sell themself as, just how badly he wanted to end this conversation. Dad wouldn't mind him sharing, right? Ben did, though, too bad then that his opinion rarely mattered.

"-I would be very pleased with that." Fine, every trick to get them off his back.

"He didn't make me, if you have to know," he finally admitted and let his face scrunch up in painful acceptance, "But he is my dad. That's what matters."

Wow, that was one way to make them feel like a piece of shit. To upset the son of a man they wanted to win a favor from may turn out to be their worst gambit yet. Did Sam really want to risk their invite to dig out strangers' family drama, especially if they otherwise failed to expose anything noteworthy? Not today, at least.

"And all the honey goes to you guys?"

"Yeah, or we sell it with the comb. Very popular on the market this season," Ben started to calm down in the face of their sudden interest, "Oh look, here's the queen!"

Being less than a fan of insects, Sam took another step back: "So you're the bee guy, I figure."

"Not really. Ann used to organize the hives before she went back to Dallas to study environmental science. We all try our best to keep the colonies healthy, though I'm more charged with watching the kids. Play with them, keep them away from the workshop and river...the usual, y'know?"

A gust of wind soughed through the woods.

"What's in the workshop?" Sam breathed, thinking of the remote shed at the end of the world.

With empty eyes, Ben slowly turned towards them, his voice low and dark: "That's where we keep the virgin sacrifices."

What the-

For nearly a whole second, he managed to hold a stern face only to immediately break out into laughter. Sam just rolled their eyes, unable to stop the grin tugging at the corners of their mouth: You little bastard...

It was a true shame, virgin sacrifices would make one hell of a headline though - that shit would sell like hot cakes.

"Take a wild guess," Ben scoffed and closed the hive shut, "Jigsaws, circular saws, carving tools, lacquer. Anything that should be kept far way from a set of five-year-olds. I mean, Shawn is twice their age and still needs supervision sometimes, it can get pretty hectic keeping them all in place."

At the prospect of juicy details, Sam found it impossible to resist digging deeper: "And still Lukas didn't like it here, huh. Why did he leave?"

"Who knows." Dad may be sound with him talking openly, but he would never backstab his brother like this. If Sam had a question for him, they had to ask on their own, thank you very much!

"I would've hoped you do," they teased further, to which Ben simply shrugged and continued with the check-up.

"It doesn't happen that people just walk out one day, so no one is sure about it."

"Ann did, though. Leave, I mean."

"That's not the same, she still visits between semesters. Lukas, he...well, he has different necessities." Gradually, a strange pressure at the back of Ben's neck made itself notable - more than just the threat of a headache and these stupid questions certainly didn't help with it.

Nobody was allowed to know where Luke stayed, it was his wish and Ben had to respect this decision, no matter how abstruse it seemed. He could never forgive himself if he broke a promise he gave. And he didn't. He never would.

The pressure crept behind his eyes now, pricking and prodding to stir something awake that was long gone. Something important… Or did he know? No way, Dad was just picking up new tools, it’s fine. Everything is fine.

"It looks like you do enjoy being home again." Sam casually pulled him back to the present, still nervous about the army of prickly animals all over his body.

"Of course!"

"Despite Shepard having to literally drag you out of a parking lot."

"You could've just asked me nicely to come along in the first place," Ben griped. The more he spoke, the clearer it became to Sam why he was acting so pissy, "It's better now, he knows what's best for me."

"And that being?"

"Not staying out there."

Sam would be slightly more shocked by how content he was despite being ripped from the streets, if they didn't invest hours into research about the mindset of cult members. For them, it felt rather embarrassing how some people just let themselves be toyed with for a bit of fake love.

"I thought you enjoyed the big-city life."

"Of course I did, it was great and loud and new and terrifying." Ben slowly placed the last honeycomb back into place. "It's good that I took a peek, but this place is where I belong."

"Yeah, sure." Someone drank a big gulp of the Kool-Aid, huh?

Sam pondered how guilty they had to feel for making it possible, though it didn't last long. Perhaps, in this special case, it was better this way. Maybe Ben just didn't know any better and as he was now, lost and found, he- Hold on.

"Lost and found" would make a sick title for the first episode, Sam had to jot it down immediately!

Finally ready to let the hives return to their work, Ben headed back to the shameless tourist: "I know that you think I'm stupid."

"Ben, come on-" There it was, the fishing for sympathy. Thank god Sam only had a short annual supply of comfort to give, and they certainly wouldn't waste on that guy.

"Luke's roommates thought so too," he explained blankly, "Because I never went to high school, or have a degree, or read Shakespeare, or know what a Kardashian is."

"Believe me, I'd be a lot happier if I didn't have to worry about half of that."

"You seem to prefer it to my home anyway. If you already have your mind made up, why waste your time? I'm not interested in changing your opinions."

Dad was, even though he never thought twice about other people's impressions in the past. What about Sam was so special then?

"Hey, I'm just asking questions," Sam countered, "I think it's charming here. Different, sure, but that doesn't mean I think badly of your home. Or you guys' lifestyle for that matter; that's the reason I came here in the first place: to witness. May I write about what we talked about?"

They already did, but it's the thought that counts.

"Write? Okay, why not." For all he cared, they could create a haiku of their dispute; as long as Dad gave the green light, it was fine. Suddenly, Ben's eyes opened wide, his face bright and rosy with embarrassment: "But not what I said about you, please! That I wanted…with you."

"Got it. So you don't want…with me anymore?" They impishly raised their eyebrow as if to mock his bygone flirting attempt.

Ben's tone was clear and sharp: "No, I don't."

Ouch, wrong time for a tease. The atmosphere between them was tense enough and Ben didn't plan to become friends any time soon, that was for sure. In the end, Sam was here to investigate - not to hold hands.

The walk back to the office was silent and just as uneventful as before. Overseeing the settlement from the hilltop, now that the morning fog had cleared up, made Sam take a deep breath in defeat. This had to be the most boring cult ever documented, they hadn't even been offered any mind-altering drugs yet. How were they supposed to thrill an audience this way?

"Well then, we could visit the fields too if you like," Ben offered as he caught their frustrated mood, "but I'm afraid that's all there is to our home. Voilà, I guess."

Though it was all he had to offer, it didn't mean there weren't more secrets to reveal: "I think I'll see that for myself and stay a while longer. There's so much more to learn about."

"We have a tent for guests. Or volunteers, if you like to have company."

"I have my own place, thanks," Sam huffed and stepped closer towards him, hoping he would still grant them the honesty he promised before, "Ben, are there any - how should I word this - events that I can help with?"

"Events? Do you mean parties?" Excess similar to the way they had met each other was absolutely not the kind of get-together Birdie liked to arrange, especially when drugs were involved - no matter how legal or not. All members were responsible for supporting William and his friends from the streets, and that meant helping them to not endanger themselves. Any evening campfires were kept perfectly sober and peaceful.

"Yeah, or prayers. A mass, if you will." Sam was desperate for a spicy narrative: ritually sacrificed rabbits for fertile earth or a midwest Walpurgis Night. A single orgy at least!

Ben was lost in thought: "Uhm...sometimes, very early in the morning, we do yoga before breakfast."

"Naked?"

"What-"

"Naked yoga, right?"

"No, just yoga," Ben stretched both arms above his head and balanced his weight on one foot, "Like this. Gets you warmed up for the day."

Sam was officially done, there really was nothing to get out of this idiot. No listener in their right mind wanted to click on a podcast about hillbilly workouts.

"Thanks, I'd rather not sing Kumbaya with you guys. Not everyone can afford to frolic in a meadow the whole day," they sighed and wiped their hands on their jacket, "Who has time for an interview now?"

"Hmm," Ben let his gaze wander once again, "try Birdie. She's prepping lunch at this time of day. You need to work, though."

"Please, I'm working right now." And what did all this work get them? A semi-relevant report about ethical, organic slaughter was the most controversial topic they could eviscerate this circus for.

"Is that so?" he eyed them from the side, "Make it a bit more obvious, maybe someone will buy it then."

"Alright, got the message," Sam assuaged him, "I'll leave you alone. Thanks for the tour anyway."

With a firm bite on his tongue, Ben gave a nod and nothing more - staying kind could be an effort every so often.

The frustrated visitor continued to stumble down the hill before shouting one last tip towards him: "You still owe me for the drinks, by the way!"

The quicker they got what they wanted, the faster they were able to let him and his family be at peace again. Another impression Ben shared with his father.

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

Thanks for reading 🤍 [Masterlist]

#Shepard just wants to pick up some “new equipment”#maybe he expects to run into a certain someone :(#tales of arcadia #parental Whumper #cult setting #mind control #conditioning #insects #bees #conditioned whumpee #amnesia #sam the bully #all this effort for a whack podcast

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yakuza-emulation · 10 months ago

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Smile for the picture, boys!

(Click on the photo for better quality)

All featuring my versions of the tormentors! All of whom are “existing” characters that I repurposed because I thought it would be fun, and why not give some light to more of my favoured Fazbear Frights characters. (I might get flack for some of these from those who do like the characters, but I love them too!)

For more on that, check under the cut! :D

Foxy Bully, also known as Michael Afton

The tried and true FNAF guy, ‘twas his brother killed and his father who did the killing. Overall, it’s a decent way to view the story, and doesn’t make my head explode (like goddamn robot children). Furthermore, the Security Logbook has a section where you’re tasked remember as a child “what prizes would you want to see behind the prize counter”, and Mike draws himself with a mullet, tank-top, shorts, and bracelets. So that’s good enough for me lol

Bonnie Bully, also known as Oscar Avila

The first of the tormentors who is kinda out there! There is the popular theory that he is Jeremy Fitzgerald, considering FNAF’s obsession with Jeremy’s and bunny paraphernalia; but Oscar also has a relation to bunnies (Plushtrap chaser)! It kinda works, and the skin tone itself was inspired by @namedoggo ‘s version of Oscar (which is super cool, please check it out!)

I also like to think he is Cassie’s father, because it kinda checks out, but I’m deciding to be oblivious to other current revelations within the community.

Freddy Bully, aka Alec Renner

Speaking of revelations, this character is full of them! Freddy bully is such a hot topic because there are so many people he can be (Jeremy Fitzgerald, Mr. Renner (Tales from the Pizzaplex), Oswald’s Dad), but I thought Alec would be a cool idea because of the whole Lonely Freddy Bodyswap occurrence and that he canonically favours Yarg Foxy. Furthermore, this was kinda tail-ended by the Ao3 fic, “I am Machine” by Hideaway_In_The_Imagination_World or @hideawaysplace on Tumblr. Wherein which Alec was friends with Oscar in the past.

I kinda also tied in Mr. Renner with Alec’s last name (because he doesn’t have one. It made me frustrated for a while), because in Tales from the Pizzaplex, the elementary principal is described as having a Freddy mask and his eyes leak oil? (I don’t actually have the tales books yet, I’m waiting until the box set releases until I get it. So all my info on this guy is limited to the several fandom wikis)

I don’t really want to tie in Oswald’s father, but Alec does have a sister, so Hazel could have the mask? Or Oswald’s dad could’ve just won it as a prize, not everyone who has a mask has to be the bully themself. (Which is ironic for Mr. Renner, but eh.))

Chica Bully, aka Sam O’Neil

Probably the most out there, but this character is practically never talked about with fan theories (for gods sake, literally everyone else in the squad has been theorized to be Jeremy Fitzgerald at some point (including fucking Michael at one point because of his multiple aliases), EXCEPT FOR HIM..?). Furthermore, it was kinda difficult to pick a good character for him, as I wanted to make it so the tormentors have some relation to the character they had the mask of. I really enjoyed Blackbird when I read it, and when I read it the first time, I thought Sam admitted to actually being a bully years before the story itself (he just got back at bullies, but the point still stands). Regardless, why not :)

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