quote the raven, nevermore // open, spooky fire stories

[juliet s.]

Odessa was quite in her element around the fire, as she already gave off a "spooky" aura. Her normal attire of all black, pale skin, dark hair and makeup. She would probably be considered goth by some, but either way, this was her natural element.

So, with a group around the fire, Odessa told a story called "The Tell-Tale Heart" which she claimed her mother told her and that it was a story some people used to learn in school. She was expressive and dramatic, clearly making it as scary as she could. Not that she had to try hard seeing as she was literally telling the story about hiding some old man's heart under the floor. Odessa was just a walking god damn horror movie at this point.

" and then he looked to the cops, for he could bear their smiles and taunts no longer. He pointed to the floorboards and shouted 'Yes! Yes, I killed him. Pull up the boards and you shall see! I killed him. But why does his heart not stop beating?! Why does it not stop!?'" She expressed, sounding as crazy and mad as she could as she spoke as the narrator before looking around at their faces with a smirk, knowing the story ended in a way that may not appease the masses.

She took her heat around the fire, leaning in to be closer to the fire. It took a lot out of her, not only that but now she was feeling cold as the adrenaline from her...performance passed. Odessa looked at everyone again and smirked "That's it. That's the story." she looked at the fire, this time not wanting to keep eye contact with anyone. She was back to...herself.

"Was that...uh...did I do alright?"

[𝐊𝐈𝐃.]

[align=center][div style="width: 450px; text-align: justify; font-family: times new roman; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.4; color: #333; word-spacing: 1px;"]telling horror stories around the campfire wasn't something cassian thought he'd be into ,  but when odessa started to tell her story ,  he couldn't help but be enraptured by the story itself ,  but also the way she told it .  maybe it shouldn't have made him so giddy ,  but the short amount of time he'd been in flintlock ,  he hadn't really gotten to know the girl much ,  and she seemed the quieter sort .  watching her get so into telling her story was so cute ,  even if the story was one of the horror genre .

the ending of the story made him smile brightly .  a cliffhanger that wasn't really a cliffhanger ,  but left something to be thought about by the reader or listener — it was his favorite kind of story ending .  plus ,  who could be mad at the ending when odessa had told it so well ?

his smile softened when odessa leaned more into the fire .

" you did more than alright .  that was a great story ,  and you told it so well ! "  he resisted the urge to scoot closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder ,  like a proud ,  comforting dad would have — like his own dad would have ,  to him .

he didn't say anything more ,  not wanting to tell a story himself .  he wasn't a terrible story - teller  ( and even loved to tell stories ) ,  but thriller tales of horror weren't really his thing .  so ,  he gave odessa another kind smile ,  and waited for the next person to tell another story — and readied himself to comfort anyone ,  if he needed to .

[freddie]

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— freddie prided himself on being able to tell such vivid stories. he was so talkative, and surprisingly good with words; he painted the scene so vividly. it was a trait he had ever since he was little. he’d recall stories to everyone around, the truth of the story getting more twisted and overdramatic with each retelling of it. the man could spin stories out of nothing and he liked to think he could get others on the edge of their seats with each word. it was nice to see that someone was so similar to him in that aspect.

he sat on a nearby log, arms resting casually on his knees, hands held together. eyes followed odessa as she spun her own story. fred had never heard it before, but by the way odessa told it, it sounded like a good one. still, his brows furrowed as she stopped talking-- and he was almost confused. was the man driven crazy by his own guilt? eyes wandered through the fire with pursed lips. he wondered absently what that felt like. what did it feel like to have such guilt after commiting a crime?

“i liked it,” he supplied, watching as cass smiled brightly and assured odessa that it was a great story. and then it went momentarily quiet, eyes wandering throughout the group to see who would tell the next one. fred shifted in his seat and started to grin. of course[i] he’d volunteer himself to tell a story.

“do you have a story, cass?” though he [i]also liked the idea of saving the best for last. he raised a brow curiously at the other man, turning his gaze around throughout the group to see if anyone else would volunteer.

[EDMUND.]

Eddie barely enjoyed talking let alone expressing such drama and suspense through a theatrical reading of a story. He would save dramatic stories for Tommy or William to tell, and perhaps conspiracy theories for Alfie if people really wanted to lose a couple of brain cells. Instead, Eddie sat silently beside Alfie as they both listened to the story. Ed stared into the fire impassively, seemingly disinterested in the discourse between everyone around the fire, whilst Alfie leaned forward in his seat, watching Odessa intently.

She had finished the story, and Alfie’s jaw dropped, brows bunching together. ❝ Wait- why was his heart still beating though?! ❞ He pointed out, horrified, before Eddie glanced over. ❝ I think that’s the point of the cliffhanger, Alf. ❞ He said, pausing before he nodded towards Odessa. ❝ Very well done. Who’s up next? ❞

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 03/06]basics.
⋟ edmund theodore stirling-moray // ed, eddie, moray
⋟ goes by the name edmund moray
⋟ male // he/him
⋟ twenty four // ages real time // born seventh august
⋟ captain of flintlock lodge // formerly a traveler with his family
⋟ mob boss of the stirling crime family
⋟ joined FL two years ago

appearance.
⋟ faceclaim - finn cole
⋟ voice claim - finn cole
⋟ 5'9ft // stocky, well-built frame
⋟ muted blue eyes and dirty blonde hair
⋟ physical health - 100% // current injuries: n/a
⋟ mental health - 60% // depression and deluded thoughts

personality.
⋟ quiet in nature but confident in himself
⋟ completely fearless, almost foolishly so
⋟ insensitive and callous // cares for very few
⋟ very calm and calculative // always planning in his head
⋟ disciplined and practices good self-control
⋟ very flirtatious and persuasive // overly lustful
⋟ aloof and untrustworthy // jealous and deceitful
⋟ tactful and knows how to get what he wants
⋟ can be very nasty when he wants to be
⋟ but can also be very protective and faithful too
⋟ has a strong set of morals // has the quality of honor

relationships.
⋟ alfred stirling x leonora moray // both deceased
⋟ three older brothers // alfonso, thomas & franklin
⋟ the fifth stirling-moray brother, dominik, was killed
⋟ two younger half-siblings // henry & ida
⋟ bisexual but he stays silent about homosexual activity
⋟ ex-husband to blake kegan // was caught cheating
⋟ father of thomas moray and charlotte moray

interaction.
⋟ storage // playlist // pinterest
⋟ physically: very hard // mentally: hard
⋟ father taught him how to kill at a young age
⋟ insensitive towards injuring or killing others // will do so without hesitation
⋟ mentally, he is slowly becoming undone from stress, grief and guilt
⋟ often found guarding the lodge with a rifle
[/spoiler]

[juliet s.]

Everyone seemed to like her story, a little smile twitched on her face as she got praise from everyone that had listened in. Though Alfie's response got her to laugh "It wasn't really beating, Alfie. That's the point, the killer just thought it was. Think of it as a guilty mind." she explained, she found it amusing that people had never heard this story before...that she for once actually knew something other people didn't.

Then there was the ever awkward looking around of wondering if anyone else wanted to tell a story. Odessa had loads of "darker" stories to tell, but she didn't want to go if someone else did. However, she didn't want them to all sit around awkwardly either "I can probably think of another one if nobody else wants to go?" she offered finally, rubbing her hands together to warm them as she was closer to the fire.