Chapter Text
Esther was sitting on the docks by the lake, her little legs dangling over the end. The water stretched out beneath her feet to the far-off wooded shores, its little ripples sparkling with warm sunlight.
Huh. She squinted up at the cloudless sky--it was sunny now? She could’ve sworn when she got here it was… when did she get here?
“Man,” she chuckled a bit and rubbed her eyes. “Must’ve fallen asleep. What time is it?”
She had a cheap little digital watch she’d swiped from either a ghost or a guest, but when she brought her arm up, she realised she was soaking. Water dripped from her sodden sleeves, and the watch was all fogged up--ugh, dammit, she liked that thing!
“You're back.”
A voice so familiar she didn't even turn around. “Hey Abbadon,” she said as she got to her feet and shook herself off like a dog. “I think I lost track of time. Is Mom looking for me?”
“Nathan is.”
“Uncle Nathan?” She looked back with a snort. “Oh, jeez, Abbadon, have you been lying in a grave again? Mom's gonna have to spray you down with the hose.”
Abbadon didn't say anything to that; he just looked at her. He was always dishevelled, but it struck Esther that he looked particularly rough today. His long hair had sticks in it, his tunic was stained, and the ever-present bags under his eyes were deeper than ever.
“Hey,” she walked up to him. “You okay? You're looking a little… I dunno.”
He seemed to seriously consider her question. “I'm alright.” He said, and a rare smile graced his face. “I'm glad to see you again, Esther. I hope the others will come back soon.”
A frown. “What, are they out?”
“In a manner of speaking.”
“Huh.” It was weird for her Mom to leave without telling her… she glanced back at the house. “Well, I better get back to Uncle Nathan! You coming, or… hah, are you just gonna stand there?”
Abbadon was looking out over the lake; it took him a moment to turn around. Wordlessly, he started up the path, and she followed.
“Sooo,” she started. “You got any plans for today? I was thinking I’d explore the basement! I really haven’t been down there enough; I heard there’s a dungeon!” A chuckle. “You think I could rope Ben into coming when he gets back? I bet that’d be priceless!”
But Abbadon didn’t react much. He kept trudging straight ahead, and Esther rolled her eyes. So he was in one of his moods… oh, well. She could talk for the both of them.
“Man, am I still dripping?” She grimaced at the little trail of droplets she was leaving behind. “Can you get me a towel from the laundry room? Mom’s gonna kill me if I ruin the floors again.”
“That won’t work.”
“C’mon, you know where the laundry room is! That’s your favourite place!”
“Was my favourite place. The dryer no longer works.” He crossed his arms. “Anyway, it would go through you. You’ll have to adjust.”
“Go through me?”
“Yes,” he said, like it was obvious. Before she could respond, the hotel was coming into view. “I will find the patriarch. He has been acting… strangely, in your absence.”
“In our- what?” Esther blinked as he scampered off. “Absence? Hey, wait, Abbadon! What do you mean!”
She tried to keep up with him, but he was already gone, leaving her at the foot of the hotel, the front doors swinging ajar in the breeze. A breeze she could hear rustling through the branches all around her… but she noticed, she didn’t feel its chill.
She was standing, sopping wet, in the middle of the courtyard, and she didn’t feel anything.
There was a pit in her stomach all of a sudden. Why… why had she been at the lake? She didn’t remember going to the lake.
(Most ghosts don’t remember how they-)
She shook her head--okay, shut up, shut up! She was just, just freaking herself out, that was crazy talk. She was gonna go inside, and Uncle Nathan was gonna tell her Mom and Ben were out in town, and they were gonna go watch movies until they got home.
That was what was gonna happen. Esther put a foot on the first step, gazed up at the swinging doors.
She was… she was gonna go inside. She inched past the doors--she didn’t want them to hit her, that was all!--and found herself in the lobby. But not the same lobby she’d left.
“Abbadon?” Esther picked her way through upturned chairs and shattered paintings with broken glass strewn across the floor--she’d never seen it look this bad. “Uncle Nathan?”
But there was no answer. Ghosts peeked through the wall, and their gazes were strange, somber; she saw the cowboy and reached out a hand.
“Wait! Hey, wait, have you seen- no, no, don’t go!”
He slipped back into the wall; her hand followed, followed through. Fear ran like a live wire through her at the sight: her hand was going through the wall, glowing that same eerie blue that Uncle Nathan did when- No! With a gasp, she whipped it back and hugged it to her chest.
“No, no, no,” she backed away, and gasped when she went through a couch. “No, no, no no! Uncle Nathan! M-Mom, Mom, where are you! Mom!”
Her eyes welled with tears-- no, this couldn’t be happening. This couldn’t, this had to be a bad dream. It had to be.
Right there in the lobby, she curled into a ball. “Mom…” She mumbled, hugging her knees to her chest, feeling a sob well up in her throat. “I-I want Mom…”
“Esther?”
A voice. Not Mom’s--but Uncle Nathan!
“Esther! You’re back?!” He sounded like he was coming closer; a second later, he stumbled right through the wall, his wide eyes landing on her. “Esther!”
There was a wild relief on his face when he saw her, but she felt none of it. She shook her head and curled up tighter, and that beaming grin dropped just as fast as it came.
“Oh, Esther,” and he was there, and hands were wrapping tight around her; his hands, she realised. His arms, squeezing like he never wanted to let go. “It’s okay, bud. I’ve got you. It’s gonna be okay.”
It’s gonna be okay, he said, and something in her wanted to scream what part of this is okay?! Something in her recoiled at his touch, because they weren’t supposed to be able to touch, he wasn’t supposed to be able to hug her like this!
“It’s gonna be okay,” he said again, and even though it didn’t even sound like he was sure of it, a much bigger part of her was so tired and so scared that for a moment she just let herself believe.
For a moment, she just flung her arms around his neck, and sobbed into that scratchy blue sweater, and let herself pretend that everything was going to be okay.