Strong language warning. Notes at the end may make chapter appear longer than it is.



I was certain Draven wouldn't be coming back, and I took advantage of that by napping for the rest of the week. What I had planned as a two-day solid nap ended up more or less a short, twelve-hour, one-day nap. I woke from said nap from Carmen knocking on my door. Sure I was open to listening to her problems when she was ready, but the same applied to me. I'd be equal to having a statue as your shrink. Anyway, after draping myself in my bathrobe, I opened the door to find her choosing a spot on the closest couch. I moved to sit next to her on the same couch, leaving some space between us.

"That wasn't me," she confessed. "I'm not myself, and I haven't been since the news of Dr. Black's assault. It's possible it may have started before then."

We were off to a good start. She disclosed something about herself.

"I had a chat with Draven. I wasn't sure how to contact him at first. James was at an esbat when I tried calling him, so I made an impromptu Ouija board."

I looked at the coffee table and picked up the cardboard panel. One side was the standard board with the alphabet and numbers, the other featured a cartoon-like honey bee. "You know, you could've let him use your laptop. He was nineteen and born in this century when he died."

"Hey! I wasn't sober when I thought of this."

I folded my arms. "Okay then, what did he tell you?"

"Well, jack shit when I asked him questions. The shot glass moved too fast for me to understand him. I researched his family and learned of an aunt of his. This aunt had depression and problems with alcohol. Family found her in a bathtub dead likely from a suicide."

"And I guess he's met her?"

Carmen shrugged. "Probably. I didn't ask him about that."

"Maybe she crossed over."

"I doubt that." Carmen shuffled her feet and changed her position. "He reminded me why I should stay alive though. Basically, no one can see him unless they had a brush with death, or that's how I interpret it. I understand from his perspective he wouldn't want a Christian funeral. Do those things affect ghosts?"

"What? Funerals?"

"Yes, those. You know, if they watch them or not."

I shrugged. "No idea."

"When that happens, there are two individuals I wouldn't want attending: that dickhead of a step-father, and the fassyhole that was once my boyfriend. The dickhead warped my mum's mind she wouldn't recognize her own daughters. Luckily for my sister, Angela, she emancipated from them and then took custody of me. She didn't endure him as long as I had. Two and a half years of whatever he deemed unchristian denied, and yet he had the gall to touch me. The fassyhole would rather see me black and blue, and gaslight just to keep me. Got mugged once, and he called me an attention-seeking whore when picking me up from the police station. After having seen Dr. Black beaten up, it triggered bad memories which I drown with my drinking."

That was deep, and dark. I'm supposed to be the dark one but Carmen's experiences — okay, they're two kinds of dark and hers was the sad kind of dark. "This may be inappropriate to ask, but did you ever—"

"Try to escape? Many times from the dickhead! Not so much from the fassyhole."

"I get you on the escape thing, but I'll save it for another night."

Carmen raised an eyebrow. "And why can't you tell me tonight?"

"It contains spoilers for the season finale and I dropped a hint for it with this statement."

She leaned backwards and stretched out on the couch. "I was hoping your situation is just as bad as mine. You still have plenty of word space to give me the short version."

I stood up and stretched my arms and legs. "Anyway," I yawned, "I'm heading off to get something to eat then see if Max and James are at Talia's."

Carmen closed her eyes and frowned. "I'll refrain from going out for a bit. These past couple weeks have been mentally exhausting, and I haven't been myself lately."

"There's always next time. I'm not one to hug but I hope you don't mind if I—"

"The blanket's fine, thanks."

I took the blanket and the pillow from the other couch and handed them to Carmen. Once she was sure she didn't need anything else, I got dressed and headed to the bus stop.

As I was waiting for the bus, Draven poofed right next to me. There were no poofing special effects but if there was, well, I'm not sure what I should call it. He appeared the moment I sat on the bench. "Did I do good, Mistress?"

I took out my phone to make it appear that I'm not talking to thin air. "You did good. I can't say if it'll last but Carmen did open up with your help."

A white and pink halo surrounded Draven. How the Hell are ghosts supposed to blush if they're made of spirit matter? "I didn't think I'd be able to do this one task but, yeah I did it."

I smiled and nodded. "You still fucked up the other tasks. Does that make you qualified familiar material?"

He scoffed. "You and I, we'll be here for at least a few centuries. I messed up, but I got time to compensate it."

"We've come to the end of our agreement. Three tasks and you move on, remember?"

The halo around Draven vanished. "I am moving on. See? I'm already fading away."

And so he was. Once he vanished, I wished he would stay around longer. Sure he's not the most ideal familiar (at least for me), but I can't help shake the feeling I don't really want him gone. I should've held back on my wish as he suddenly reappeared.

"You know, that wasn't what I needed to move on. In fact, I'm still pissed I never became a vampire, and you left me for dead. By the way, the bus scheduled to pick you up? It broke down. Take it as a gift from me to you. Enjoy your night, Mistress."

After he vanished again, I looked at my phone to check the bus schedule. Right next to the route number was a red rectangle with the white words TRIP CANCELLED

Well, fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Fucking Draven and the dealI made. By the time my burst of anger died down, I had crushed my phone into a blackand white melded mess. Sure I could borrow Carmen's but fuck it! I ended upwalking anyway. All thanks to Draven Nightmoon.

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While it may seem that Carmen's problems are solved, they actually aren't. Things like PTSD, depression, anxiety, , addiction, they don't magically go away (though it would be nice if it did). There's no one person who can take away all problems or cure them. Talking about them to loved ones (hoping they acknowledge the problem) is one step. One of the best things to do is be open to someone in this type of distress and from there guide them to whatever services are available. Mind you if the source of the distress comes from religion try not to take it as they're weak in their faith. Give the person the space they need but also watch out if they might harm themselves.

An even better thing would be to reduce the stigma of mental illness. Mental health is just as important as physical health. If someone has to skip out on work or school because of a cold or a sprained ankle, a day at home just to de-stress won't hurt anyone. Someone with one or more than one aren't exactly maniacs out to kill people.

I would also like to stress consent again in this. Specifically when it comes to someone who says "I love you" and then hits you or touches you in a what that makes you feel uncomfortable. You don't need to kiss and hug or have sex to show or prove you love someone. You don't have to obey every command of that person either just so your relationship won't end in a bad way. Chances are you're in a bad one if it turns out like that. Just remember: you can say no to someone if it makes you feel uncomfortable. Even in the roleplays between couples that are, erm, adult in nature have set rules and boundaries.

I won't ask anyone about these deep things for the interactive question, but regarding how Draven helped Carmen in a way, have you ever helped out a stranger?

More Draven can be found in the paranormal shorts book.

I doubt anyone reads to the end of these PSA's but if you enjoy what you've read feel free to vote or recommend this to others. If you have anything critical to say I'd like to hear that too.

Song featured: "Ghost" by Jamie-Lee Kriewitz

edited: 17/08/2018