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As Nori exited the rental car, she felt like she was hit by a wall of moisture.  It was hot.  It was humid.  It was more than anything they had ever experienced in her lifetime.  A dampness welled up on and around her as an unnatural frizz destroyed whatever work she had done earlier that day for her hair.

[color=00FFFF]“Hell is real after all,”[/color] Nori whispered as she swept her hand across her forehead.  She had seen that sign too many times to count, but it was here over a thousand miles, two flights, and a short car ride away that she truly believed it so.  She had arrived the night before in Lafayette and from the moment she exited the airport she had hated this heat.  It was always there, lingering at the back of her mind.  Even in the air-conditioned hotel her mind raced at the thought of stepping outside to travel here today.  And she was right to worry.  Even though she dressed down in anticipation, wearing shorts and a cropped t-shirt, she still felt like she was bathing in the air alone.  

[color=708090]*caw* *caw*[/color]

A sound pulled her focus up to the skies.  Her eyes darted around, searching, yet it could not find the source of the call. Nori wondered what the wildlife must be like down here.  Up in Ohio the animal population was quite tame in comparison to what must lurk in the swamps, this much was certain.  There were plenty of deer, flying squirrels (the fact that flying squirrels were the most common form of squirrels in Ohio still made Nori feel uneasy), and various other critters.  These swamps more than likely had gators, and gators were neither cute nor cuddly.  

Nori moved around to the back of the car and opened the trunk.  She had grabbed some snacks and water before she left Lafayette and tied the bag containing them around the handle of her medicine bag.  She did not want to bring these snacks into a coffee shop.  She pulled the bags out of the trunk, untied the knot, and placed the snack bag back into the trunk of the car.  As she went to close it, she heard the same [color=708090]*caw*[/color] sound but this time it sounded from all around and was quickly overcome by the sound of flapping wings.  Nori looked around and could only mouth a [i]“what the fuck”[/i] as everywhere they looked a crow was looking back.  On top of the buildings, light poles and even trees crows looked back. 

[color=00FFFF]“A murder in Quintin,”[/color] she smiled, [color=00FFFF]“a beautiful sight.  I have a gift.”[/color] She thought to herself as she leaned back into the truck of the car, and grabbed a bag of unsalted pistachios and opened it up. She held the bag up to the masses, shaking it, before walking away from the car and pouring out all of the food on the ground.  

[color=00FFFF]“There, I hope you all enjoy the snack.”[/color]  Nori put the wrapper in her medicine bag before she headed inside the coffee shop.

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Everyone knew Jordan was about to travel.  Yet no one was kept in the loop as to where he was about to go.  If anyone asked, he would simply tell them there was a lot of this country he wanted to see, from the Rocky Mountains to the great lakes, and that this trip was to simply knock off a few of those places from his list.  In truth he was heading to a small town down in the swamps of Louisiana, a place called Quintin.  It was not far from Lafayette, and it would be the first time Jordan spent any time down south.

[color=FF7F50]“Okay, let’s check it over again.  Do I have.. yes, toothbrush and paste, and did I… yep, portable chargers and… okay I got enough clothes for a bit in this bag as well.  Sick.”[/color]

His flight was not for another twelve hours, and it would be nearly twenty hours until he stepped foot in this town of destiny.  Yet his mind raced, and when his mind races, he gets anxious, and when he is anxious, he has to make sure everything is accounted for multiple times.  As he checked over his other bag, he made mental notes of everything inside of it.  Before long, he found himself in bed scrolling through his photos.  He would stop and stare at each one, wondering how this stranger came to exist in each photo.

[color=FF7F50]“Is this one big prank?”[/color]

He thought over the logistics of such a thing and concluded that it was not.  I mean how would someone fake a relationship, fake the photos?  Why would they do that?  He knew the answer to this question.  No one did.  No one faked his relationship nor anything else for that matter.  He truly went through a paranormal experience, and he was not alone in it.  

He arose from his bed and went back to checking his luggage, and he would check it again in an hour, and check it one last time an hour later.  His dreams beckoned, and he had hope that they would treat him well.  He left early the next morning and flew down to a regional hub before taking a second plane to Lafayette.  When he left the airport, he felt the moisture of the air immediately and it brought him back to his football days.  He would do two-a-days in hot, moist weather not too far off from this and to him it wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be.  It was annoying, yes, it was uncomfortable, but it was not the end of the world.  He made his way to his cheap hotel and made his plans for the trip to Quintin the following day.  

[color=FF7F50]“Grab an Uber to pick up the car from Turo, pray the AC works, and then see what my future holds.”[/color]

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Olivia Uber stopped a mile up the road from the welcome sign to Quintin.  She had flown into the bigger city earlier in the morning and had to fight tooth and nail to get a ride even this far.  While money does open most doors, it seemed that no one was willing to take her into the town itself.  It took her an hour to adjust the drop off point far enough away to find someone willing to take her.  The driver warned her the entire way there to not linger in the town any longer than she needed to, but she only half listened to his ramblings. Her attention was fixed on the matters at hand.  

She had wondered what the meeting would be.  It is not every day that your best friend turns up missing, with a stranger taking their place, and it is doubly true when a whole host of individuals claim the same thing happened to them.

[color=a187be]“Alright, this is as far as I will go.  You have about a mile to walk,”[/color] the driver paused as he stared Olivia down, [color=a187be]“it’s not too late to turn around, you know.  This town is.. not a place for a good person to stay.”[/color]

[color=f49ac2]“No, no I am good.  Thank you though,”[/color] she paused as she met his gaze, [color=f49ac2]“it’s not too late to take up my offer, extra hundred dollars on your tip if you drop me off inside the town, even at the welcome sign.”[/color]

[color=a187be]“Not a chance.”[/color]

[color=f49ac2]“All the same have a wonderful day!”[/color]

Olivia regretted not taking his offer as she walked in the heat of the bayou.  It was hot, it was wet, and every step stole a large part of her strength.  She finished off her bottle of water and clenched it in her hand.  She would arrive before long, however she very much looked forward to being out of this heat and have a nice cup of coffee in her hand.

A half hour later she stood in front of the coffee shop.  To the side she could see a massive amount of crows attacking the ground, pecking at something.  She wondered how, and why, they got there but did not fixate on it.  She opened the door to the coffee shop and headed inside.  She quickly spotted the group, and pulled up a seat next to a tall muscular guy, and waited for what came next.

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Nori, Olivia, and Jordan had all found themselves seated at the table with the group.  Each one had ordered a coffee before sitting down.  Nori arrived first and had a cup of black coffee, she sipped at it as she listened to each story.  Her leg began to noticeably shake as each one relayed a different version of the same person.  Jordan, arriving second, had grabbed a black coffee as well and took one sip before he added in some cream.  He sat, leaning back into the chair, and appeared engaged in each story.  Olivia, the last of the three, had a cup of black coffee but she had only taken one sip before she pushed it far in front of her.  She had a notebook and had started to take notes of what everyone said.  Eventually, the introductions hit a lull and Nori leg stopped shaking.  She decided to make the most of the silence and get her introduction out of the way.

[color=00FFFF]“I’m Nori,”[/color] she said quickly, [color=00FFFF]“The Eleanor I knew was a light in the dark, she was kind, friendly, and she lifted me up when I most needed it.”[/color]  She paused as she sipped from her cup of coffee.  A small look of disgust fell on her face, but she took another sip before she put the cup down.  [color=00FFFF]“We did everything together, and when they moved away, I thought we would still have each other.”[/color]  Nori paused once again as her leg began to shake.  [color=00FFFF]“We went to meet up after my grandparents passed and they were someone different.  I don’t know any leads on where to go from here, but I hope we all find our Eleanor’s.”[/color]

[color=FF7F50]“Jordan, pleasure,”[/color] he quickly followed.  His voice carried with it a noticeable New England accent. [color=FF7F50]“I dated my Eleanor for quite a few years.  When we broke up it hit me hard.  She was the love of my life and I thought we would’ve…. would’ve taken that next step, you know?”[/color]  Jordan leaned forward and rested his arms on the table.  [color=FF7F50]“We met up to catch up, but it wasn’t the woman I loved who showed up, it was someone else.  I have just existed since then.  I wish I knew more but,”[/color] he paused, [color=FF7F50]“if I did, I don’t think I would be here.”[/color]

Olivia put her pen down and sighed as she did.  “[color=f49ac2]My name is Olivia, and Eleanor was also my best friend, we separated when we went to college and same story, one day they were Eleanor and the next they were a stranger.”[/color]  She paused as she looked over her notes before she exhaled and leaned back into her chair.