Shawn squinted at the lines, as if they might tell him anything. Certainly, he didn't understand any of these magical languages, but maybe there'd be a visual element or something he could understand. "She's a girl who came with us to...wherever this is. She got caught by the rabbit in the briar patch."

"Tiffany is alive." Crowley said, continuing to stare fixedly at the lines in the sand and then at the strange symbols, blood trickling down the yellow fingernail. "She is carrying something she and you think is important in some way." 

"Who...is Delilah or Delilia or Darlene? Who is she?"

Shawn actually smiled and sighed with relief. "Oh, it's great that she's okay! And Delilah's another girl who came with us. She's kinda mean." He paused for a second when he noticed the way Crowley phrased things. "Wait, it's something we think is important? Does that mean it's not, really?"

"Delilah is dead." Crowley said with casual indifference, following a blood drop as it came through one of the arches of a symbol written in the sand. "hmm...." Then after a second or two he followed the droplet further "I can't really say if it is something that is in important. But it looks like you and Delilah thought it was. Maybe Delilah more than you. And Tiffany did too."

"Who is Ralph?"

"That's..m..m..m...me." Ralph said, breaking his silence from about a dozen yards away after hearing his name.  Bobby was laying against the tree as if he was tired, hot and sweating.

"Ah yes. I remember you. It says you are alive and you are. Good for you that you are still at it. And you're still fat too I see. Though you didn't succeed at bringing the Master Maker back. That's a shame. Maybe he could have corrected all of this."


Ralph didn't respond to these comments, and Crowley went right on with the next question

"Who is Sally?"

Shawn's first instinct was to hide his surprise, but then he realised there was no reason to do that. He gave Crowley a confused look. "She's a girl I know from school - but she didn't come here with us? Is she here?"

"Sally is....." Crowley drew another line in the sand, the rivet filling in with dark, crimson blood. "...missing. I don't know if she's dead or alive. She could be dead."

"That's a lot of kids you know that are gone." Crowley commented as he hiked up his sagging diaper with one hand and traced the lines with another. "Oh yes. Grace. Do you know a Grace? Because she is missing too. It could be that your friend Griffix got to both of them. And then there's......Linda. Do you know a Linda? She's missing too."

"They're missing? Where could they be if your magic stuff won't find them?" Shawn didn't really know much about Grace (wasn't she one of the new girls who moved to his neighbourhood?), or Linda, but he did like Sally. "If Griffix got to them, wouldn't you know that they're dead?"

"I'm just reading the signs, I'm not the one who wrote them. If I had access to the things in my shop, it would be much easier." Crowley grumbled.

"It's possible they're all dead. Every last one of them. Why else would so many kids from the same neighborhood be either dead or missing? It's either the Circus or Griffix. Or both." Crowley surmized. "Either way, Griffix will keep on going until he stops. That means you, and your friends could be next." Crowley said.

"If he runs out of other kids."

"I'm sorry - I know you're way smarter than me about all this kind of stuff." Shawn could tell Crowley was getting irritated, and hoped a bit of flattery might soothe the little shopkeeper. "Would stopping whoever's making him do this fix Griffix? Sorry if it's a dumb question."

"Yes." Crowley growled. "That would stop it." He barked in irritation. Then he hiked his sagging diaper up again. "That or you could fool Griffix into thinking he is full. That might give you more time."

Shawn immediately perked up at Crowley's suggestion. "Fool him into thinking he's full? How would that work?"

"I don't know how to do it. I mean, I do know how but I'm not going back to get my wares. It's because the risk is too great. I'm not about to die."


"But I do know someone in this Underworld that could help. It's dangerous though."

Shawn cocked his head in confusion. "Do you know how to get back to your wares? If you can go back to the Circus, that could be a way for us to leave..."

"Yes. We must go up the mountain,and wait for the Summoner's Cloud to pass overhead. Once it does, when you receive the sign, you will be able to get out from the Underworld." Crowley explained.

"But time her is limited. For someone like you. You might be stuck here forever if you don't get out soon. Especially since the Circus is no longer here to bind you."

"In a word....you don't belong here anymore."

Shawn folded his arms. "That's fine with me - I didn't want to be here in the first place." He looked around to make sure Ralph and Bobby were okay. "How will we get past the dragon? It took one of my friends before."

Shawn glanced over at Bobby and Ralph. The two were playing 'slaps.' Ralph's hands looked red and purple and were placed palms down. Bobby's hands met them underneath palms up.

"Look how red your hands are!" Bobby exclaimed to Ralph cruelly, taking one hand from underneath and slapping the back of Ralph's hand before Ralph could pull it away.

"OW!!!" Ralph cried, slowly putting his hand back on Bobby's. "When is it my turn?" he asked, wounded.

"When I miss." Bobby instructed. Or rather 'old' Bobby instructed. The personality of Bobby's changing nature creeping into this world.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 10:22, Fri 10 Aug 2018.

"We have to climb." Crowley said, pointing his long, yellow fingernail in the distance. "The clouds obscure the side of the mountain. The dragon only hunts what it sees. If we aren't in the open, it won't get us."

"Come now. We must go." And suddenly, Crowley lunged at Shawn. The 'lunge' was more of a toddler's waddle. The creature pushed itself towards Shawn with a running force, bouncing off Shawn's shin before almost falling backwards. Crowley grabbed the back of Shawn's calf before falling down, catching himself. Then he pushed against Shawn's leg, in an infantile gesture indicating he wanted to be carried or held.

"Same as before, really. We're climbing a mountain to sneak past a dragon and get home."Shawn noticed Bobby's personality was changing, and filed it away just in case. Maybe that meant his wish would work if it was an emergency? He bent over to pick up Crowley, holding him so the little creature's diaper was as far away from his nose as possible. "All right, where to?"

With Crowley on his shoulders, Shawn managed to start walking, holding on to the little demons toddler legs that were draped over each of his shoulders. Though he succeeded in avoiding the diaper itself, the smell of stale urine filled the area around Shawns head.

"just up ahead...that's all. We need to move quickly. Follow this path. Do it just like I guide you."

Shawn tried to breathe through his mouth rather than his nose, but it wasn't exactly pleasant either way. He headed along the path Crowley pointed out, making sure Bobby and Ralph were following too.

OOC: Shawn Join's thread - Shawn: The Climb Up To The Top