Eerie, Indiana fanfiction: Hand-me-Down/Keepsake

[froodle]

Syndi didn't look up when Marshall burst through their parents front door, slammed it behind him, and secured it with a deadbolt, three wreaths of garlic, and the little lacy curtain that could be pulled over the glass panels to provide privacy.

"Hi Mars," she said, her tone distracted.

"Hey," he said. "If anything kind of... gooey-looking calls for me in the next few days, tell them I'm not home, okay?"

"Sure," said Syndi, then paused as his words registered. "Wait, what? Gooey?"

"It's probably fine," said Marshall, skirting the wide bay window and taking the long route to join his sister on the couch. "Zombie prom is on Saturday so if I can avoid them until then, everything will work out and I won't need to blow my allowance on a corpse-flower corsage."

Syndi rolled her eyes.

"Okay, Mars," she said. "You're such a hot ticket that undead middle schoolers are queuing up to be your taffeta-wrapped phantom passenger. I promise to lie to any love-struck revenant that tracks you back here in the hopes of asking you out."

"Thanks," said Marshall, leaning back on the sofa cushions with a sigh of relief. "So, how was your night?"

"Oh, you know," said Syndi. "Fine. Quiet. Mom and Dad dropped Grandma off at the bingo parlour, then they had reservations at the Bus Terminal and Supper Club, so I ordered pizza and got some studying done."

"Gran still won't let you go with her to bingo night, huh?" asked Marshall, his tone sympathetic.

Syndi scowled.

"She told me that she was sorry, and that although she didn't want to stifle my investigative spirit, I was just too young and inexperienced for Wednesday night "Sudden Death" bingo," she groused. "Whatever. I was there during the great Slot Machine Massacre last winter, I can handle a few rounds of Turbo Bingo."

Marshall shrugged.

"She's been gambling with retirees since before we were born," he said. "She might have a point."

"Yeah," Syndi allowed, grudgingly. "It still sucks, though."

Marshall nodded, leaning forward to snag a slice of luke-warm pizza from the grease-smeared plate on the living room table. As he moved, something glittered in the attenuated illumination of the reading lamp on a corner table, catching his eye.

"What's Gran's jewellery box doing down here?" he asked, pushing aside the ruffled newspapers that half-hid the huge casket from view.

"I guess she's having a clear out," said Syndi, shrugging. "She told me to go through it, keep anything I wanted, and drop the rest off at Eerie Thrift in the morning."

"And she didn't ask me to help?" said Marshall, aghast. "Do you have any idea how dangerous old-lady jewellery can be? You never know what might be cursed, or poisoned, or full of evil ghosts who rope you into their lacklustre romantic lives."

"I think not wanting to hear that speech is exactly why she didn't ask you," said Syndi. "That and you probably don't care about rhinestone earrings and making sure you match your brooches to your cardigans."

"That's true," said Marshall, opening up the ornately-carved lid of the heavy wooden chest. The pieces of coloured glass inlaid along the top sparkled and shone as he moved it. "I only ever match brooches to curses, and I never wear cardigans."

"Good to know," said Syndi, scooching closer to him in order to peer into the velvet-lined interior. "Mom and Dad between them already own too many cardigans for a house this size. We're at maximum cardigan capacity as is."

"I need to get a couple of warding charms from the Secret Spot," said Marshall, stepping over her outstretched legs as he headed towards the stairs and making Syndi wonder just when he'd gotten tall enough to do that. "Don't touch anything 'til I get back."

"It's too late," she said, picking up a string of brightly coloured beads. "The power of the costume jewellery commands me!"

She could hear him laughing as he reached the upstairs landing.

Three hours later, the last of the pizza had been eaten and the syrupy, marshmallow-flecked dregs from multiple servings of hot chocolate were congealing at the bottom of two oversized mugs. The jewellery box gaped emptily, it's many compartments and drawers pulled out and the contents spilled amongst magazines and remote controls and half-finished shopping lists.

Syndi was wearing a huge pair of dangly earrings shaped like Elvis. They had been cleverly hinged at the hip joint so that the King's pelvis gyrated with even the slightest movement of her head, and his white jumpsuit shone with a thousand tiny pieces of iridescent plastic. She'd already declared that she was never taking them off, although Marshall didn't think all the glitter was shower-proof.

For his part, Marshall had identified only one enchanted piece out of the vast gleaming pile. It was a pendant in the shape of a stylized peacock, it's tail a rainbow semi-circle, and it had taken all his self-control not to scream when his fingers brushed against it and the howling roar of unreality rushed to fill the sudden void inside him. Syndi - not Julie, never Julie, no matter how much they looked the same - had rolled her eyes and called him a dork, and smashed it to tinsel-bright shards with the smooth river stone they used as a doorstop in summer. Then she'd made them both cocoa, and they'd gone back to admiring the creepiness of Victorian-era human hair jewellery.

The front door opened, the deadbolt sliding back as their grandmother entered. She smiled at both of them, but the smile died on her lips as her gaze fell upon the slivers of coloured enamel still littering the carpet.

"Hey, Grandma," said Marshall. "I think we need to have a little talk."





Teller Family History

First Date by froodle, in which a young Edgar Teller shows off one of his earlier inventions

Popcorn by froodle. Friday night is always movie night in the Teller household.

The Teller Home for Displaced Youth by froodle, in which Edgar harbours some doubts about his new home town

Lawn by froodle, in which Marilyn Teller contemplaces some yardwork

Tornado Day, Revisited by froodle, in which Syndi learns exactly what it means to be Miss Tornado Day

Wildlife by froodle, in which Simon and Marshall go to the beach

Culinary Delights by froodle, in which Syndi's terrible cooking may or may not have been an accident

Camping by froodle, in which Syndi cannot sleep

Artist in the Family by froodle, in which an immortal creature takes a liking to Syndi

Without Due Care and Attention by froodle, in which Syndi finally becomes mobile

Waiting In by froodle, in which there is an ice-storm and a handyman does not arrive

Brunch by froodle, in which Marilyn does not appreciate Edgar's help in the kitchen

Handmade by froodle, in which the Tellers receive a Christmas package from Marilyn's mother

Poor Life Choices by froodle, in which Syndi loves her brother anyway

Lillian by froodle, in which Marilyn's mother has concerns

Visitor by froodle, in which Marshall's grandma comes to stay

Nap by froodle, in which Marshall has a quiet moment in the Secret Spot

Fresh Sheets by froodle

Tradition by froodle, in which Dash and Marshall decorate a Christmas tree

Hometown by froodle, in which Mars and Syndi visit New Jersey

Comments

[evilinsanemonkey]

oh my god i love this so much!

[froodle]

Thank you :D i really enjoyed writing this ome, although now I kind of want some pelvis thrusting elvis earrings...

[evilinsanemonkey]

just check for curses

[froodle]

Isn't that par for the course when dealing with second hand jewellery? It's just basic spiritual hygiene

[deifire]

This is perfect! Teller sibling bonding! Marshall's grandma! So much weirdness throughout!

And of course the inevitable really creepy pendant at the end...poor Mars.

[froodle]

Poor Mars! He can't even spend an evening hiding from potential zombie prom dates in peace.