*This fanfic is underneath my folder titled “Shadow House fanfics”. The fanfics are based off the book series by Dan Poblocki. The main character in this story is one of the characters in the series, but she’s an adult in this story as opposed to being twelve in the original series and it takes place years after the events in the books. Poppy Caldwell is from the Shadow House books, Valerian is my OC. Gacha Club character designs are under my forum titled “My character designs<33[2]”. Enjoy!*
“Do you have anywhere that you’d like to go? Do you mind if I take you to my apartment? Because that’s where we are right now, Valerian. My apartment.” Poppy said.
She had just finished driving to her apartment and parked the car in the parking lot when it had occurred to her that maybe Valerian had places to be.
“No, it’s fine. I’d like to see what the inside of your apartment is like.” Valerian grinned, again, his teeth shining bright from the light of the moon.
It might not have been in her best interest to let a man like him into her apartment, but she had dealt with far more terrible things before in her life and came out okay and Valerian didn’t seem all that threatening. A little strange, sure, but not scary.
She got out of the car seat, Valerian following after her, glad that it was the time that others were asleep and wouldn’t bother her.
………………………………………………………………….
“What made you want to work in stage crew? Do you like the dark?” Poppy asked.
The both of them were sitting in the couch of her apartment, Poppy wearing a long, lavender lace nightgown, something that made her feel like a Princess and was more comfortable than her tight pink dress that she had to wear for the play.
It was the first question that came to her mind. It didn’t sound like anything that most people would ask, but she hoped that it would lead to more things that she’d learn about Valerian.
“Yes, well…yes. The dark reminds me of where I stayed when I was twelve. After my parents kicked me out, I was living by myself for a bit until I heard these kids screaming in a river near me like they were drowning and so I ran towards them and-forgive me if I sound insane, but once I jumped in, I was pulled to this house. Not really a house, but a mansion. I kept trying to get out of the area, but something was keeping me out. I tried going into the mansion, but again, there was a barrier keeping me out. I screamed for help but no one came. I didn’t know what happened to me, but I hoped that I would be able to get out someday. I had to sleep in a shed outside, a shed that sometimes had ghost kids, sometimes didn’t. Sometimes a carnival would be outside, sometimes it wouldn’t. Things would always change and-“
“Was the house called Larkspur?”
“Yes! Yes, that was it! It was called Larkspur! How do you know that? Have you…have you been there before?”
Poppy sighed, turning away from Valerian. In that moment, she remembered the excitement she felt when she was twelve years old when she held a note from her “Aunt Delphinia Larkspur”, promises of a life rich in wealth and love, so different from the worn-out orphanage, “Thursday’s Hope”, only for her heart to be shattered when she realized there was no Aunt Delphinia, there were other kids sent to that house, each told that it was something different, all lured to feed it.
It disgusted her, it horrified her, but the important thing was that Larkspur was gone, that it had burned to the ground.
“I was lured there. I thought I was finally going to get a home but I got nothing but pain. There were five of us sent there. Only me and two other kids survived. I haven’t kept in touch with the other kids but sometimes I wonder if they still think about it, if they’re still haunted by it-hey, you never told me why your parents kicked you out.”
She didn’t know if that would get him to leave, if it was too prying, but she was already opening up to him a bit about her past, so the least he could do was the same for her.
Points:
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Canary word: Present
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Original Text:
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125,021 Literary Works • 672,739 Reviews
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I like Poppy’s confidence in her skills to handle this unknown threat. But still I find her lack of caution alarming. Hopefully this goes well..
Hm I feel like you could have used a few more ~outside~ descriptions on what Valerian looks like while he tells Poppy more of his backstory. Especially some dramatic pauses or reactions of Poppy’s to the supernatural claim would work nicely!
And I knew it was relevant that he got kicked out at 12. Maybe that’s the magic number to go to Larkspur House?
And ohh the house is evil. Oops. I kinda missed all the hints, sorry! Well, good that it is gone now then! Wonder what Valerian witnessed in there…
And ofc: Poppy said. Incomplete. Please use comma. Thank you.
ahhh! sorry it got deleted!!! So glad I always copy them just in case!!!!
Hii!!!! Hop here with a review that is mostly yapping!!! Now, onto the review ~~~~~
Okay so I just finished reading this and I’m kind of sitting here like… what did I just walk into. It starts off so normal. Poppy driving Valerian to her apartment, asking if he has anywhere to go, and I’m like okay cool, maybe this is a soft little character moment. But then he’s like “we’re already at your apartment” and smiling with his moonlit teeth and I immediately got suspicious. Like sir why are you glowing. What are you hiding
Poppy’s internal thoughts are interesting too. She’s clearly been through stuff. She knows it might not be smart to let a guy like him into her apartment but she’s like whatever, I’ve survived worse. That line made me pause. It’s subtle but it says a lot about her. She’s not naive, she’s just tired. She’s used to danger and she’s learned how to live with it. That’s a whole mood
Then they’re sitting on the couch and she’s in this lavender lace nightgown and I love that detail. It’s soft and dreamy and kind of romantic but also makes her feel like she’s trying to hold onto something gentle in a world that’s clearly not gentle. She asks him about stage crew and the dark and I thought that was such a good question. It’s not something people usually ask but it felt real. Like she’s trying to understand him, trying to open a door
And then Valerian starts talking and I was not ready. He goes from “I like the dark” to “my parents kicked me out and I lived alone and then I heard kids screaming in a river and got pulled into a mansion with ghost children and carnivals and sheds” and I was just sitting here like WHAT. That escalated so fast. I had to reread it because I thought I missed something. But no, that’s just how it goes. And honestly I kind of love that. It’s chaotic and surreal and creepy and sad all at once
The mansion stuff is wild. There’s a barrier keeping him out, ghost kids that come and go, a carnival that sometimes appears, and a shed he sleeps in. It’s like a dream sequence but it’s his actual life. And the way he tells it is so casual, like he’s used to it. That makes it even creepier. Like he’s been living in this weird nightmare and just accepted it
Then Poppy asks if the house was called Larkspur and he freaks out and I was like oh okay we’re getting into shared trauma territory. And then she starts remembering her own experience and it’s heartbreaking. She thought she was going to a loving home, got a letter from someone claiming to be her aunt, and ended up in the same place. That whole part about Thursday’s Hope and the other kids was so sad. It felt like a twisted fairy tale. Like she was promised magic and got horror instead
I really liked how she opened up in that moment. It made her feel real. She’s not just reacting to Valerian’s story, she’s connecting it to her own. And then she asks him why his parents kicked him out and I was like yes, ask the hard questions. You’re being vulnerable, he should be too. That’s fair
The pacing of this whole scene is really interesting. It starts off slow and quiet and then suddenly we’re in this surreal horror backstory and it’s like the room got darker. I could feel the shift. It’s not just a conversation anymore, it’s a confession. It’s two people trying to make sense of something that doesn’t make sense
Also I love how the supernatural stuff is just dropped in like it’s normal. Ghost kids, barriers, carnivals, haunted sheds. It’s not explained, it’s just there. That makes it feel more real somehow. Like when you’ve lived through something traumatic and weird, you don’t always have the words to make it make sense. You just tell it how it happened
The emotional beats hit hard too. Poppy’s memory of being lured to Larkspur, thinking she was finally going to get a home, and then realizing it was all a lie. That’s devastating. And the fact that only three out of five kids survived? That’s dark. She doesn’t even know what happened to the others. That line about wondering if they’re still haunted by it really got me. It’s quiet but powerful
And then she turns the question back to Valerian. She wants to know why his parents kicked him out. That’s such a good moment. She’s already shared something painful, so now she’s asking him to do the same. It’s not aggressive, it’s honest. She’s trying to understand him. And maybe trying to see if he’s someone she can trust
Overall this piece is intense. It starts off soft and then dives into something deep and eerie and emotional. The dialogue feels natural, the pacing works, and the characters are layered. I want to know more about Larkspur. What was it really. Why did it lure kids. What happened to the ones who didn’t make it. I want to know more about Valerian and his weird glowing teeth and ghost shed life. I want to know what happens next
This story is strange and sad and kind of beautiful in a broken way. It’s not trying to be perfect, it’s trying to be honest. And that’s what makes it work. Keep writing and stay amazing!!!
Love,
Hop
I have more Shadow House fanfics under my folder %u201CShadow House fanfics%u201D. You can check those out if you want! You can also read the series by Dan Poblocki, it%u2019s really good! ^v^
Ooo! Ok!
There's also a Shadow House mobile game (from Scholastic because that's the company that published the book series) that has more lore! :]
Would you like to read part two? Back at her apartment (part two)
Yessss
:>