6Summary: Hilary is an aspiring writer who soon finds herself caught in a dangerous game with an online predator.
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Chapter One: What a Big Mistake
"…Once upon a time there was a farm boy called Tyson Granger," Hilary read aloud as she typed the words.
Tyson glanced over her shoulder. "Why am I a farm boy?"
She rolled her eyes at her boyfriend. "Because who wants to read about a hero in the first chapter? You were a nobody when you started beyblading, remember? And then you rose to the top through hard work and determination. That's what people want to read." She clicked on her writer's forum and browed through the topics. People wanted to read stories about overcoming adversity! "Now, why don't you let me work on my novel? I mean, aren't you going to watch the baseball game with the rest of the boys anyway?"
He pouted. "You're trying to get rid of me. What, are you going to discuss writing with your other nerdy friends?" He then flashed her a grin.
Rolling her eyes yet again, Hilary said, "Yes, that's the plan, Tyson. Mariah, Emily, Salima, and Mathilda. We have a meeting over on Discord to talk about writing stuff. I know you're not a fan of the creative arts, so I'll spare you the boring details. Just enjoy the game. I promise you'll be an incredibly handsome farm boy in the story, okay?"
He leaned down and kissed her on her left cheek. "Damn right. Just… Be careful, okay? It's kinda dangerous posting stuff online. You never know what sort of freaks are out there."
"I've been at this for a long time, Tyson. I know how to handle myself."
He pulled away and retreated. Before stepping through the door, he glanced over his shoulder and added, "And that's why I asked you to be my girlfriend." He exited the room.
The corners of her mouth curved upwards. Tyson could be so sweet at times…. Not that she would ever admit that to him. Still, she was lucky to have him. The boy could've had any woman in the world, yet he had settled for her. "Okay, Hilary, get your mind together and focus," she said aloud, staring at the screen yet her eyes moved to the Discord icon on the taskbar. She opened it and scanned the online friends. Her friends weren't on yet.
She wanted to write. She was supposed to write, but the words weren't coming. "Fresh perspectives," she murmured, logging into her writer's account. "New people. New ideas." It was always a risk sending messages to other writers – you never knew what sort of response you were going to receive. Most people never bothered to reply, but it was still worth trying. It was like applying for a job.
"Right…" She scanned the first page of the writing website, searching for names that looked familiar to her. Her eyes settled on an author. It was a username she had contacted before – King and Ariel. She remembered it clearly – she had left a constructive review on the author's story, pointing out a few minor errors that could easily be fixed. Nothing had been changed. She had even sent an invitation message, but the author had never replied. Perhaps things had changed now? "Honestly, King. You need to come up with a less obvious username if you're trying to be anonymous," she said.
She pressed the 'private message' button on the author's profile and then wrote her message. It was a generic one – one that simply sold what her writer's community was all about – but it was worth a try. She hit the send button and waited for a response. It wasn't long before she received one. Would the author give a proper response? "Let's wait and see…." She murmured, opening her inbox.
The author was interested in joining and had even provided their Discord username.
Time to chat on Discord.
What could possibly go wrong?
QueenBee [Hilary]: Hello! Sadly this site don't seem to show certain links, but here is the link to the writing community I run. If you have any questions, do let me know.
Maybe it was a little too forward, but best to cut to the point.
King and Ariel: Hey dearie, excuse the late reply. Came back from helping some youths at my boxing gym. After freshening up, I opted to let my eyes rest from artificial light a bit longer. Have you enjoyed the weekend so far?
Hilary raised her eyebrow. "Hey dearie?" she said, frowning. "You don't even know me. What the fuck?" No one who had ever responded to her invitation message had used the word dearie. Who was this creep? But she shook it off. Maybe he was old-fashioned.
King and Ariel: Yep. At least it allowed Disc. Sure thing.
QueenBee: I'll invite you to our main server too.
Hilary posted the Discord link. Hopefully, she wasn't making a big mistake!
King and Ariel: It seems relatively quiet
QueenBee: Yeah, most people are asleep at this time of the day
King and Ariel: It's 9pm over here, about to be 10 soon. Are you working on something new?"
Best to be honest, Hilary thought.
QueenBee: Nah, I don't really write anymore.
It was hard finding time to write now. Things were so much easier when she was back at school and had little responsibility to worry about. Now, finding time to write was a luxury.
King and Ariel: Seriously? That's surprising
QueenBee: The fandoms I wrote for are either dead or full of trash, so I upload to A03
Well, most of her fandoms were inactive. One of them hadn't seen a new story since 2018. As for the other fandoms? Fighting, bickering, and creepy bestiality stories.
King and Ariel: Aw come on, you just need the right motivation or someone to brainstorm with. I wouldn't be able to do much without editor pals
Well, that's why I have a writing discord server and a writing forum, Hilary mused.
QueenBee: I'm also in my final semester of university so that's my priority with ten assignments due in four weeks lol. So kinda kills the motivation to write. But I'm hoping to get back into some editing stuff in November and fix up some old stories. But I'm not writing anything big anymore. Don't have the time.
Well, it was the truth. Studying and writing assignments killed your creativity.
King and Ariel: Seriously? Well, knowledge is an eternal path. A lot of people go in and out of fields throughout their lifetime. It's great you're moving into a new one. We're all students and teachers at the same time, so I look forward to learning something new from you in the coming months. Yikes. Did you let those assignments pile up? Sounds like someone did. Aha. Nm.
Hilary raised an eyebrow. What the fuck? Was he implying she was being lazy?
QueenBee: No, I'm good with time management. I had placement for six weeks.
Six weeks doing unpaid work to learn all about the industry she wanted to work in.
QueenBee: Then the university just gives you all the remaining assignments after placement. In terms of writing, I've basically written everything I wanted to write anyway though I'll probably do one shots still. But I'm not writing anything big anymore. Don't have the time.
At least one shots were focused on a single idea and much easier to manage than a big novel.
King and Ariel: There will be time later. To write 'big' that is. For me, nothing ever ends. It all just continues in some way shape or form. If it were 10 assignments in 4 weeks for me then I'd just do 4 per week. Simple enough.
She gritted her teeth. Was he telling her how to manage her time effectively when he knew nothing about the work it all entailed? It was easy to make such silly claims without knowing the circumstances. It was as if he assumed she did not have a life outside assignments.
King and Ariel: You'll naturally find new interests as you explore new minds, series you encounter. We should have ourselves a session sometime.
What the fuck?
QueenBee: Nah, I know I've written the stuff I've always wanted to write. All that's left is to improve it. I don't want to write anything big again
There was always room to improve 'completed' work. It was a fun game to see what she could fix.
King and Ariel: It's understandable. It's like you've poured your all into such pieces. I'll have to read some, which would you recommend I start with?
QueenBee: None lol. They're all pretty bad. Save yourself the trouble haha.
The fuck? Course, she was joking. "I really don't like it when people ask what stuff of mine they should read," she said aloud, shaking her head, thinking of a response. "It doesn't feel right, you know? It's like choosing someone's meal to eat."
King and Ariel: Aww, are you feeling a bit shy? I did scroll through earlier in the day but decided I'd wait to ask you rather than pry.
Shy? What the hell?
QueenBee: Nope! I'd rather people just read stuff that appeals to them rather than have me give advice
King and Ariel: Surely one of the pieces have stuck out most in your heart. I'd rather start with that. Get a sense of the driving forces behind it's creation.
"Uh, what?" This was never something she had encountered before on all her years as a writer.
QueenBee: Nope. There are other people that are more deserving of having their stuff read than me. Most of my stuff is just random parody lol
King and Ariel: Then it should be easy to choose one. Draw one from the magical hat in your mind and I'll read it.
QueenBee: Nah sorry. Like I said, I don't like having people ask which stuff of mine to read. I'm weird like that haha What makes you want to read my stuff anyway?
King and Ariel: Well, you were kind enough to invite me to a forum though I've never been into that. Not of that era at least. I guess, I wanted to figure out your likes related to your favourite piece. Have you ever been on a writing app called 'IMVU'?
QueenBee: Never heard of it. What is it?
King and Ariel: Ah, it's nothing. The writing on the app is dead sadly. It's also used for making avatars and meeting others.
QueenBee: I just like to invite writers to a forum to help other writers.
King and Ariel: That's beautiful.
This was getting weirder by the passing minute, Hilary thought. But she had to know more and not judge so rashly without more information.
QueenBee: So yeah, I made it several years ago. Sadly, forums aren't as active as they used to be. But I won't give up. And I continue to find people from writing sites
King and Ariel: That's the spirit. Quite the woman. Doing your own unique part to pass what was once given to you. That's the way everything is though. It's interesting to have views of both the past era and the present. I can only wonder the many experiences your soul holds that most wouldn't even stop to ponder on. Anyone you pass by could have shocking experiences.
Um, what?
"I'm so bloody confused and a little creeped out," Hilary said aloud.
QueenBee: Yeah, that's an interesting thought
King and Ariel: Mhm.
Hilary decided not to reply, still weirded out. She had met a lot of strange people online before, but this was something else entirely. Still, maybe she was making rash judgements. There had to be more to the author. Right?
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This is based on a true story based on an incident that occurred in this very fandom – you may have heard about it. All the threats used in this story are real. I'm not going to mention who this author is since anonymity and all, but you'll learn more about it as the story progresses.
I haven't written much in awhile so I'm a little rusty, but let's see how this goes. If you're keen to know how much crazier this situation becomes, drop a review.