Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I made my way down to the shoreline, the rhythmic sound of crashing waves, the refreshing air, and the sun against my skin.

My family had left me in the hotel lobby, and only after they made it to the beach did they decide to text me. I spotted my sister waving frantically, her long braids whipping around in the ocean breeze.

Or maybe it wasn’t her. I assumed so anyway.

“Over here!” she called, her voice not hers.

I yelled back, “I'll be there in a second.”

I quickened my pace, being tossed around and spun. Until I reached the volleyball group, it didn't occur to me that she wasn’t yelling out to me, but to her teammate. But I decided to bother her anyway.

“Tiana, do you know where-” I had barely gotten out before I was struck with a volleyball. It struck me to the ground like lightning, too hard.

The lady wasn’t my sister; she seemed annoyed, standing back with her arms crossed, while the other girls helped me up. Just as I stood up, I felt dizzy and the world shifted on its side.

The ground beneath me seemed to shimmer, and the scene around me warped like a blur. I felt myself shift in place, engulfed by an unknown force.

When my vision cleared, I found myself standing on a smaller, lonely beach, the air fresh as ever, and an untouched scene. Quieter. Too quiet. The kind of silence that eats at you.

The sea looked hand-painted, and the air buzzed with something. I quickly looked over at the shack— not a cabin, but just wrong. Like it had always been there, even when it didn’t.

My heart raced as I looked around. The sign beside it read, “Punishment Island,” the letters carved deeply into the wood, almost as if they had been etched by the living. Was someone here?

I looked back at the water behind me I seemingly came from, but the painted sea stretched for miles. Before I could gather my thoughts, he appeared. ARGON.

I didn’t know him, but his name just shouted at me. And he definitely knew me. His long hair floated like it was underwater, eyes that didn't blink, just bore through me like I was something he’d already decided.

My lungs betrayed me; I gasped like I was drowning, but the air slipped in anyway, as normal as ever. The next thing I knew, I was an inch from his face. Then he just grabbed me. His hands were warm, too warm.

I shouted, “Wait! Let me go!”

But the words were left in the air, unheard, ignored. He dragged me toward the shack, and I stumbled, the sand turning cold under my feet. The more I tried to calm myself, the worse it got. The world spun.

I could hear my heartbeat, but I couldn't feel it. And somewhere behind me, I swore I heard someone laughing. But then I didn’t anymore. Then nothing.

Chapter Text

I'm brought back. But not to any reality. I was in the middle of space. I couldn't even react before Argon spun me to face him. I felt tight and squeezed as if he had some grip on me.

He seemed so close now, as if his breath was warm on my face, like his presence was a weight pressing against my chest. But in reality, he was a far distance from me.

“You’re here now.” His voice was low, a calming whisper, but with the reality of something older and darker.

The way his lips didn’t move when he spoke made my skin crawl.

“Why?” He asked.

It sounded as if he were concerned, yet in the slightest way possible. I didn’t know the answer to his question. Was I even meant to be here? Punishment Island?

The name echoed in my mind. And the void around us makes the thought seep in greater.

“What do you want from me?” I managed, almost a whisper.

I was frozen, caught in his gaze. Argon didn't answer at first. His eyes flickered behind me, and I felt a shift in the air, the sound of something. Something distant.

Almost like laughter, but wrong. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. What was this, Argon, being so? He seemed to have been here forever.

“I don’t want anything from you.” He said, cutting off my thought. “I just don’t know why you would ever attempt such a thing….” He said, taking a long pause.

My stomach turned. But I stood almost mindlessly in space. What did that mean? What did anything he’s said at all mean?

“Where am I?” I finally got the courage to ask.

Argon’s grip loosened, and for a moment, I thought he might answer. But instead, he tilted his head and made an expression that didn’t reach his eyes.

“You’re on Punishment Island.” He said softly, as though it should have meant something to me. “You used to be so eager and full of life. To now see it drained from your very face, tis a great shame..” He said, but his face remained unmoving.

“Its too bad, you’ll just have to figure it out, one way or another,” Argon said while turning toward something in the void. Before I could process what he meant, I heard the sound of wood being slid against something- a noise that messed with my mind. Faint voices and noises follow in the background. But we were in space… Were we not alone? And I still didn’t get his old riddled language.

"Who else is here?” I almost quivered, but my voice barely sounded like my own.

Argon stared deep in my soul, I could see-no, feel him do so.

"Oh, I'm sure you know them." His voice echoed out, followed by my conscience. 

Chapter Text

I feel the grip Argon had on me loosen. I look down at myself, still in space, then at Argon. I blink. The scene changes. I am met with the scene of a funeral.

Wait. It was my funeral. My family, whom I thought were friends, and service people huddle around my casket. It's me. A haunting face, but it's my face. So why is the scariest thing I've laid eyes on… I look like death itself.

I walk towards my casket, but no one seems to notice. Was I invisible to them? A spectator? And if that's the case, what's my business here? But then I bring my attention back to my lifeless body. They didn’t bother to close my eyes, and it was terrifying.

The serviceman cleared his throat and started a speech. He made me seem like some saint, a goddess, a beauty. I didn’t think I was ugly, but I know I wasn't a good person.

My funeral must have just been a distraction for them. It is disillusioned from any truth. The more he went on, the more it seemed like this whole ritual was just comfort for the living.

Me? Heaven? They knew I wasn’t religious. Hell, I was probably stuck in purgatory to pay my penance as he spoke. The whole thing was fake. Like really fake. The reality itself was real, but anything that revolved around it wasn’t. 

The tall, great oaks that surround my burial had twisted branches. Some people fake cry, then stop once unnoticed. The flowers, the very casket I was in. 

There was always more to something once I looked. The more of the scene I took in, the more heartache I felt. I mean, I was right after all… they really didn’t seem to care.

Suddenly, a tall, native man with curly hair approached behind me. But his eyes, there was just something unreal about his eyes. It had to be Argon. And what color were they? My brain couldn’t even process such a thing.

It was like a spacey pit, but at a new angle, it was a different color. Wait. What was he going to do now?  I shift my attention back to a relevant question. I turned to face Argon, my heart pounding with a mix of confusion and dread from the scene.

His presence was both familiar and unsettling. I tried to speak, but no words came out. It felt as if my attempt to speak made the silence louder.

After a minute or two of silence, he finally spoke.

 “You don’t get it, do you?” He said, looking down.

My face tensed with annoyance.

“You don't even-” I said, upset, only to be cut off with a dose of fear.

“Listen,” His voice struck and grip upon me like once before, just harder now.

He only loosened it when he saw my state of discomfort. 

“This was your fate.”  He said more aggressively.

Then it struck me, if I had succeeded, I-but what does this mean now?

“It means you’ll have to see to the outcomes of your selfishness.” He read my mind.

Just like that. The fact bothered me greatly.

“You can-” I said, only to be cut off.

“Yes, but that doesn’t matter.” He stated sharply.

I look around my funeral scene. The world faded in my dizzying mind. 

“So how long-” I had only gotten out, but he had disappeared.

I looked around for him. Even in the “fake” trees. I don't know why, but I did. I was alone. But I could still hear his voice.

“This is your first punishment. You’ll remain for however long I like.” His voice faded into the scene in front of me.

I shift my attention back to my casket. It was now being lowered into the ground. So… What will I do now?

Chapter Text

I watch as my body is slowly lowered into the ground. I slowly turn to my family in horror. I was stuck here... and with them… I never wanted to be buried more at the thought.

The air around me had seemed to thicken. And it had felt as if a heavy blanket was draped over my whole body. I had to find some sort of way out, right?

I tried to compose myself, but the thought continued to eat at me. I looked up at at the dizzing world in hopes of a sign. But I found nothing. Nothing. I had focus my attention on my purpose in this dimension.

Or at least I didn’t want sit here forever. I had realized my family had shifted to the other side of my grave. But even then, they were still pretty close. I saw my Mom who was talking to my sister.

Her "only" daughter. The hate I once had for them slowly returned. By the time I looked at my father, I was my old self again. Driven by hate, and I crashed and burned. I hated them.

Putting aside my old feelings, I had tried to walk past them. My sister standing closest. I was then met with an unpleasant force. One that felt like it struck my soul. One that was just wrong.

I find myself barely off the ground. I hourl over in outer shock. Did I- had I gone through her? I paused and looked down at myself, but no harm was done. It was as if I had felt her touch my soul.

She seemed as if she felt something as well. Something had happened. I stood up in disbelief, looking right at my sister. But she only glanced around, confused, before brushing the feeling off.

So… I really was invisible, and somehow spiritually stuck in this dimension. Great. Just great. But where was Argon throughout all of this nonsense? I had the feeling he wasn’t actually gone, but just lurking around and watching. 

“Argon!” I called out.

But no one heard me. Not a soul. I had practically watched the sound wave travel before me, only to bounce off those around me. My isolation finally setting in.

I am here to spectate and only spectate… So now the real question is, what am I supposed to see?