Chapter Text
The echoes of a whimper peal from beyond the sewer grates. The key that Tim gave you as thanks for helping locate his missing books lies in your pocket. Your hand goes to it as the moonlight glistens on the lock chaining the grate shut.
Stepping silently down the incline, you can hear the thrum of waves roll against the cliff below mingle with the dripping sludge oozing from the bottom of the huge sewer pipe. As you get closer, the soft cries reverberate louder.
When you received the key from Tim, he did not explain why he thought the key to the sewer would be useful to a new farmer. Nor did he offer any warnings about what creatures lurk inside. But you certainly heard the local legends of a shadow that haunted the sewers, pilfering objects from the townspeople. The question is, do you believe the stories of the Snatcher, or did Tim grant you the key because there was nothing to fear inside?
In any case, you are a farmer here in Subcon Valley and taking care of animals and nature is kind of your job. (And the Moonjumper does seem to expect you to help all flora and fauna in the valley. And you’re still not sure what they put in your tea to make you see purple cherry spirits walking around but you rather not see what else their magic can do.) It sounds like there’s a pretty wounded animal in the sewer that might need your assistance. You better go investigate.
The key clinks against the lock and the whimpering is halted by a gasp. The padlock drops with a thump and as you reach for the bars, you see a pair of glowing yellow lights that seem to be staring straight at you.
You slowly open the gate and the glowing yellow lights disappear. A flicker of a snaking shadow slithers down the sewer. You pursue. Your footsteps rhythmically tap along the stone and the sloshing waste bubbles and warns against straying too far to the right or else risk dropping into it. The smell is horrendous, and the deeper you go, the more humid the pungent air becomes.
Orange light beckons you around a corner. Once you reach it, you find what you can only guess is the Snatcher, cowering in the corner behind a jack-o-lantern much too small to cover him.
The shadow is looking at you with wide, golden eyes from behind his tight coils. He appears to be covered in some sort of fur that is bristling right now. Tufts around his mane are fluffed out, as if his body is making itself look bigger despite his attempts at making himself look smaller.
A quick glance (which you can spare since he doesn’t seem keen on attacking) around his little hideaway in the sewers might tell you that this is indeed the infamous Snatcher, rumored to have snatched Cat’s quilt and Lukas’ armchair, and there’s a whole bookshelf of books you might want to check later for Tim’s sake. There are a couple purple lanterns with the same jack-o-lantern expression scattered in the area, offering a cozy light that almost makes you forget the sewer smell. Almost…
Turning back to the Snatcher, you could choose to enter a staring contest with the increasingly anxious looking creature, or you could introduce yourself and hope he returns the gesture.
“H-hello,” the Snatcher responds to your greeting, revealing a fanged mouth that glows just like his eyes. His voice is layered with an odd reverb that echoes strangely against the curved walls. Though it does sound familiar! You aren’t sure where you’ve heard his voice before but there’s a cadence underneath the reverb that puts you at ease.
“Aren’t you,” Snatcher begins after a pause, “scared of me?”
He hasn’t given you a reason to be frightened, but if you tell him you are frightened, his eyes will droop as he becomes crestfallen and mutters that he understands and inevitably apologizes for the scare. Instead, you tell him that you aren’t, and his golden eyes become larger as he lifts his head from behind his coils.
“Truly? You’re an odd one, aren’t you?” He looks down at his pronged paws. “Usually when people see me, they run screaming. Not that I blame them.” He slouches, flexing his paws.
Stepping further into the alcove, you cause him to lean back. His neck mane puffs up and, flustered, he quickly tries to shove it back down. An orange tint colors where his cheeks might be. He seems nice for a monster rumored to be dangerous.
You ask how long he has been living down here.
“For a long while, now.” Snatcher looks around. “At least longer than you’ve been running the farm.”
It’s autumn now, so its been about two seas—hey wait a minute! How does he know you’re running the farm?
“Er—well—” Snatcher stammers, wringing his paws as he shrugged his noodle arms. “Y-you overhear a lot of conversations from the sewers, I guess.”
Oh. The way information spreads even to the cryptids in a small town is fascinating. But, then again, you’ve heard plenty about the Snatcher before meeting him, so perhaps it’s only fair that he’s heard of you, too.
You ask him why he stole Cat’s quilt, pointing towards the red fabric decorated with images of fruits and vegetables.
“I didn’t know it was hers!” he insists, sounding rather distraught and guilty about it. “I found it at the edge of the forest one evening. I went to give it back when I found out, but she had already replaced it and it can get cold down here during winter.” He sees you eye the armchair and the tip of his tail twitches in agitation as he adds, “And I didn’t take that from Lukas, either! I’m not a thief!”
You mention that that’s too bad, because Lukas is kind of a jerk.
Snatcher startles at your bluntness. While he’s stunned into silence, you clarify that the local lawyer is rude at best and cruel at worst and often tricks people into petty contracts. He could probably convince someone to sign their soul away if he wanted. Just the worst of the worst of lawyers.
“I see,” he mutters, his golden eyes drooping considerably. “You’re right, of course. He is rather unpleasant. I am sorry about that.”
Marveling at the fact that the town’s monster in the sewer is apologizing for the actions of one of the human residents, you tell Snatcher it doesn’t really matter. There are plenty of other nice people in the valley, him included!
Snatcher smiles and he looks exactly like the surrounding jack-o-lanterns as orange colors his cheeks. Tapping the tips of his paws together, he glances to the side as if he isn’t sure what to say.
You remember the crying sounds that led you to the sewer in the first place. That could have been something personal, maybe you shouldn’t pry—oh no? Jump right into it then, okay.
Snatcher falters at the question. His orange blush deepens, and he clears his throat.
“It was probably just the wind,” he mumbles faintly. “Nothing to be concerned about.” He hesitates, looking you in the eyes, he dips his head apologetically, “Apologies if that’s what made you venture so far in. I know this isn’t the most pleasant of places.”
Right as he says that, a bubble pops from the sewer sludge and you and Snatcher both wrinkle your features.
Before you can ask another question, you cover a yawn and a quick glance at your watch tells you it’s already midnight. Gracious! Better hustle back to the house. If you don’t get to sleep by 2 am, you’ll be feeling it in the morning.
“You better go,” Snatcher smiles though it doesn’t reach his golden eyes. “But thank you for talking with me awhile. Oh, wait, will you make it back safely?” He glances upward, frowning as he contemplates how late it is.
You tell him you’ll be fine! You’ve been deep into the woods scavenging far later than this.
“That doesn’t seem wise,” Snatcher frets. “But it might do you more harm to have a monster escorting you home than good. Very well, stay safe please, and take care.”
You nod and offer Snatcher a wave goodbye. He returns it slowly with his fluffy, pronged paw. His mouth is closed, making only his eyes visible as you run back the way you came. Snatcher probably doesn’t expect you to come back.
But you know what? He seems like he’d appreciate the company if you do.