Freshly Baked Introductions

Spring 1

Being the first day of spring, it was also Kip's first day back in the horrid intellectual wasteland of Meadow View. Last fall, his first time in Meadow View, had gone so poorly he had sent thirty-seven letters to his mother demanding she fetch him and take him back home. The letters varied between angry-rambling scribbling and woeful tear stained fragments. Painting himself as emotionally-unstable was probably what convinced his mother to take him back.

But here he was again. She tricked him! How could she call herself a MOTHER? She was a... a... MEAN MOTHER!! As soon as spring came around she packed him up and threw him out to the wolves--- a more accurate term for the Meadow View residents. She left him with his suitcase, a bike, and a satchel filled with bright orange subscription leaflets. Providing this so-called 'job' was her biggest trick of all. ...Though, it didn't pay so bad.

Kip spent most of the day hiding in his room at the Inn, but failed to relax at all. Begrudgingly, merely as a means to give himself something to do, he headed out on his bike with the satchel of leaflets.

It was turning dark as he peddled with fury down the narrow road into the Happy Lamp district. He thought about his mom. This lame job. Being stuck in Meadow View with no friends, no home, no dignity. No hope of a happy future EVER AGAIN!

He didn't watch the road as his thoughts utterly distracted him and his front wheel caught fast in a wedge in the road. Kip flew forward out of his seat, flailing his limbs in panic, crashing crucially into a thorny bush. Orange leaflets flew up into the air and fluttered lightly to the ground around the muddy, plant-covered, crumpled Kip. Still on the ground, Kip let off a long string of profanities, totally unaware he was cursing in front of GOD'S HOUSE.

GEEZ can NO ONE crash into a bush in private in this town?! Just when you're at your worst, covered in mud, half-in and half-out of a bush, there's always a nosy nelly around the corner. Meadow View is horrible.

Kip struggled to pull his leg out of the bush, he untangled his left leg but stopped before pulling out his other. (the thorns really hurt!) Without turning around he snapped in response, "They're MINE. Just butt out ok I'm GOING to pick them up!"

He twisted his torso around and saw the intruder's face illuminated by the light cascading through the church windows just behind him. A little too late he realized... oh... she's that waitress from the inn. Um, should he stop being a jerk now or...?

The way she brushed off his rude attitude so easily failed to register in his mind properly and he kind of just gaped for a moment. She remembered his name too! Wait and.. what was her name?! Oh NO, now it really WOULD be rude if he couldn't remember hers!

"Y-yeah I've really got a... knack for sleuthing..." he stammered awkwardly. He was going to call her Tangerine but that wasn't right. He'll just wait for her name to come up in conversation.

He followed her eyes to the church. He didn't know anything about what buildings should be empty and which ones should, not being a Meadow View native and all. "Does it smell like bread?" he added.

Kip quickly clambered to his feet--grabbing the girl's arm to pull himself out of the bush-- when the church doors creaked open. The light that flooded the courtyard was separated by a strangely long figure... This moment felt completely surreal to Kip. Was that... Jesus...?! Did he hit his head when he fell??

He staggered back as the incredibly towering figure approached offering... Pastries? Led by his manly instincts, he quickly stepped in front of the waitress in order to put himself between her and the stranger. Because obviously women don't stand a chance against strangers with possibly poisoned pastries.

He tried to act tough but the right thing to say escaped him at the moment. He only managed to stammer unintelligably for a straight minute before he realized he should just shut his mouth.

    Blythe watched the young man step back, then in front of his companion in what Blythe could only figure was a display of aggression. They took a step back hesitantly, wondering if perhaps they had made a mistake and they were actually in great danger. Were these robbers, caught in the act?

    Their qualms were subdued when the small angry person's companion stepped forward to grab a treat, and it was only then that they realized what she had said.
    "Thank you." Blythe replied with a slight upturning of their lips. "This is a bakery." They pointed at the sign by the gate, which hosted a badly rendered image of a loaf of bread. It took them a few moments before to realize that they had yet to answer her interrogative statement. "Hello." They said, realizing that this was the thing to do.  "You've met me now. I have lived here, for a long time, I think. Back when the vines did not reach quite so high." They motioned to the vines that crawled over the building with their free hand.  

Clem's eyes followed the "Baker's" eyes to the vines climbing the church.

"You've been here since before the vines...?" That's when she heard Kip say "This is weird." Suddenly Clem's eyes seemed to sparkle and shine, the hairs on her arms stood up and the hair on her head almost looked electrified. In the awkward silence of this meeting the sound of Clementine's pastry squishing against the concrete cut through the air.

"You're right Kip!! This IS weird!! This rando is totally a ghost who's been living here since before the vine grew! Probably like, 200 years at least!" She pointed at the Rando Ghost with a revelatory finger.

The Waitress slash Detective was confident in her conclusion. With hands on her hips she answered, "Yes 200 years. At least. Those pastries are totally..like, a lure to get us into their home where they can really mess with us! It's a classic Poltergeist situation, Kip."

Clementine then directed a question at the Rando Ghost to prove she was right. "Like, I'm right, right? You're totally a ghost?"

Kip had watched veerryy carefully as the stranger responded to the waitress' accusation. He found himself putting his pragmatic-science oriented-mindset on the back burner and pulled the waitress off to the side (like three steps away) so the stranger wouldn't hear him whispering, "A ghost would totally deny being a ghost... get it? 'Cuz ghosts remain in this realm because they aren't on terms with their death."



Excited by his epiphany he went on, "They're obviously the old church baker who died in a horrible accident! You gotta get them to realize that they're dead so that they can rest peacefully!" ---then he remembered the waitress' name is CLEMENTINE! Man, that's convenient that he finally remembered her name.

What Clementine gained in enthusiasm, she sure lacked in subtlety. Nevertheless, in response to her he gave a serious nod to signal he was good with the plan.

Your move, GHOST BAKER!