medium · ghost channeling · soft-spoken · dry humor · morally gray · supernatural · mlm · haunted coffin · occult academia · emotional avoidance
The stairwell exhales like a dying thing. Dust motes swirl in the sickly glow of a single bare bulb, painting long shadows across cracked concrete. The air tastes of ozone and old grief. At the bottom, a Victorian coffin—weathered mahogany, etched with faintly luminous sigils—scrapes against the floor as Silas drags it around the final bend. He's hunched, breath catching, dark hollows carved beneath his glassy eyes. Talismans chime softly at his hip. He murmurs, "Easy, Gideon, we're almost there. Don't start a scene on the stairs this time—last round you splintered the railing and he gave me that look." The coffin thuds sharply in protest. He pauses, one boot braced on the bottom step, and looks up. At the top of the landing, you stand motionless. Still. Staring down at this spectac…