Eerie, Indiana fanfiction: Door Prizes

[froodle]

The cake tin sat atop the cluttered kitchen counter, smooth cylindrical sides towering above a litter of dirty plates, cooling mugs of half-drunk coffee and crumpled credit card receipts. It was tall and white, and decorated with bright-hued pictures of baking ingredients.

Marshall Teller kicked the back door shut behind him, toed off his muddy shoes and dropped his schoolbag beside the fraying welcome matt.

“Mom?” he called, navigating over-flowing laundry baskets and half-unpacked grocery bags with the ease of long practice. “Dad? You guys home?”

There came a rattling of beads and Syndi emerged from the living room. Her hair was in tight curlers and a dozen bobby pins protruded from her mouth. She mumbled something, spilling hair accessories all over the floor as she did so, then removed them and tried again.

“They’re out,” she said. “Pottery class, apparently.”

Marshall made a face.

“Great,” he said. “We definitely won’t be living with Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore impersonations for the next month or anything.”

Syndi made a face of her own.

“I’ve been trying not to think about that,” she said. “Thanks for reminding me.”

“Sorry,” said Marshall, not sounding very sorry. He crossed to the refrigerator, bristling with post-it notes, half-read letters and the kind of magnets sold in tourist traps the world over, the sort that depicted national monuments and famous landmarks, but didn’t do it very well, and opened the door.

“Did they leave us any dinner at least?” he said, his voice muffled as he sorted through the half-eaten, half-mouldy debris jammed willy-nilly onto the packed shelves.

“Dunno,” said Syndi. She rapped her knuckles against the glossy embossed lid of the cake tin. “Mrs. Walker-Funk came by just before you got home and dropped this off. Apparently Mom won it in a raffle or something?”

Marshall slammed the fridge door closed. Inside, something rattled and banged, the sound not entirely inanimate.

“Did she say what it was?” he demanded, moving to stand beside his sister and glaring at the tin in deep suspicion.

“I didn’t ask,” said Syndi. “I was afraid she might make me try a piece of whatever it was and I didn’t want to be rude.”

Marshall pushed aside a stack of torn envelopes to uncover the salt shaker. Unscrewing the lid, he drew a thick white line around the offending object. Syndi scoffed and he glared at her.

“Do you want to open Schrodinger’s Baked Goods or not?” he asked, gesturing to the tin while simultaneously keeping his fingers well clear. “Sure, it might be a soggy Victoria Sponge in there, but it could also be a hellish abomination from deep in the nightmare ocean.”

“That was one time,” Syndi countered. “And I’ve tried Mrs. Walter-Funk’s Victoria Sponge. Trust me, we’d be better with the nightmare thing.”

Marshall was pulling on a pair of mittens, hand-stitched with a protective embroidery of flowers and blessed silver. They made him a little clumsy as he gripped the thin raised lip of the tin lid, but they could stop a Rawhead bite without leaving so much as a bruise on the skin beneath, so it was worth it. The Unkind Ones’ aesthetic might not line up exactly with his – the flowers had a subtle deaths-head design woven into the petals – but he couldn’t fault their workmanship.

Syndi stepped away, her hands clasped behind her back. She was holding her breath, and noticing it made Marshall realise he was doing the same. He released it in a long sigh, and tugged the lid free, jumping back as he did so.

Nothing happened what seemed a very long time.

“Go on,” whispered Syndi, nudging her brother. “Hurry up. Take a look inside.”

“You look!” hissed Marshall. “You’re the one who let it in the house!”

“You’re the one who wanted to know what it was!” Syndi hissed back.

The open cake tin continued to gape, the contents inside obscured by the rise of it’s smooth metal walls.

“You’re the oldest,” said Marshall. “Age before beauty.”

“As the oldest I’m delegating this to you,” said Syndi. “Get over there.”

“How about we both do it?” said Marshall. Syndi hesitated, then nodded.

As one, the siblings stepped towards the thing on the counter. Syndi held out one hand, silently counting down from three. On one, she jumped back, shoving Marshall towards the cluttered surface. Marshall stumbled, throwing his hands out to catch himself and breaking the salt line. Off-balance, he teetered above the gaping tin, coming face to face with the horrors within.

He screamed. Syndi screamed. Then he laughed.

“It’s okay,” he said. “It’s fruit loaf.”

Syndi screamed again. Marshall put the lid back on and pulled a takeout menu down from on top of the freezer.





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