Live For Laughter (Story)

Live For Laughter details a small Pennsylvania town in the mid 1980's after the children in town start watching a peculiar new program called "Live For Laughter" and they begin to become obsessed and exhibit very strange behavior.

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## PLOT

* During the fall of the year 1985(-ish), there is a new children and young adult entertainment series announced from notable and renowned creators of phenomenal programming, the Dawson Brothers, which will be called "Live For Laughter". The show is announced to be a mature sketch comedy series, hosted by the dangerously charming (and equally mysterious) Larry Laughter. Not only that, but it is going to be premiering exclusively on North-Eastern Pennsylvania Local Access, 'In honor of the creators roots'. Being local legends in their small town, the youth all eagerly await the premier of what is sure-to-be an instant classic.
* Upon the premier, local parents become quickly confused and uncomfortable with the program, as it seems to be a much more mature and surreal humor experience, with many claiming that the sketches on the show are downright nonsensical and macabre. Not only are the sketches obscure and seemingly inappropriate for such a young audience, but the parents take particular note with the host, the so-called Larry Laughter, and his mid-1950's aesthetic, irresistible charm, and hints of seeping dread whenever he is on screen. But despite the parents displeasure, the children absolutely adore the show, becoming such intense fans that they start to become obsessed. The biggest cause for concern however is that between the few parents whom were willing or comfortable to discuss what they saw on the show, each person whom watched seemed to have wildly different accounts for what occurred in each episode, as if everyone is seeing different episodes when they watch somehow.
* The young fans start to become so intensely fanatic about the show that it begins altering their behaviors and personalities, making them grow disaffected and impatient towards anything that isn't 'LFL', and even becoming cold and cruel to anyone whom disagreed with the shows quality or god-forbid tried to get in the way of their viewings of it. The children start to bully and ostracize any of the others who had not yet been able to or wouldn't watch the show until they enjoyed it. They become distant towards any family member that isn't completely supportive of their new loves. They even grow violent when their local cable access channels hesitate on showing the next episode during one of the following weeks. More so than that, local children are starting to disappear and run away, in small but still notable numbers. The kids are most definitely not alright...
* Eventually, it is announced that on Veteran's Day, there is going to be a Live Episode of Live For Laughter being filmed in a nearby town, which is going to be having a live audience of local children. The children in town begin clamoring for a chance and opportunities to go see the live show, but many of the parents are still hesitant and uncomfortable. Despite this, many children decide to go on their own anyway, running away from home just in order to attend. In their panic and distress, the parents whom kids run off still know deep down to not worry too much, as they know the kids are just having a little rebellion, and they are sure they'll be back after the show. The parents desperate enough even decide to watch the live episode when it comes, trying to see their children there. Upon the Live Premier, not only are all of the recently run away children there in the audience, but also every single other child to disappear over the previous weeks. Before the parents could finish breathing their sighs of relief, the video feed for the show suddenly cuts out, leaving only the audio (Or it only shows the parents reactions, not the program itself). As the first sketch of the Live Show starts, it erupts with a cavalcade of hellish screams of all ages and agonies, inter cut with the hysterical laughter of the children which slowly dies down throughout the airing, until only the screams remain.
* This is the moment that we learn that this small town is Centrallia, Pennsylvania.
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* (The Parishioner whom is tempted by a young female pupil, has said temptations exacerbated by the episode he watches, involving an all-too-adult and sexual dance number of a woman resembling the girl dressed as a catholic schoolgirl set to 'Hot For Teacher'. He shuts it off quickly in shameful horror).
* (On the day of the Live Veterans Show, a parent named \_\_\_\_ trying to appease her son actually sent her kid to the taping. When she calls the studio that the taping was supposed to be, they say that the building was closed for the holiday.) (/she dropped her son off. While waiting in the lobby because the set was closed to parents, the lobby became over capacity, so they had to wait outside. The parents sit there and wait, until they discover that the studio is empty, with no sign of their children)
* Andrew watches the premier with his son, and the moment he see's Larry Laughter, Andrew is horrified, shuts it off, and forbids his son from ever watching. He recognized the host...
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* In the penultimate chapter, Andrew is chasing his son and Lucius through the darkened woods, desperate to save him. In a clearing he see's his son, an equal distance between himself and Lucius. Andrew, holding a gun, begs for his son to come back to him, but Lucius takes the form of Andrews former wife, Elaine. Isaac runs towards the being resembling his mother, and he trips over a gnarled root and into a ditch. Everyone freezes still and even Lucius stops. Andrew desperately crawls to his son, whom fell and cracked his head. While Isaac was bleeding out in Andrews arms, he couldn't even make out the syllables to call out to his father. Isaac dies in his fathers arms. Lucius becomes uncharacteristically quiet, trying to tell Andrew that this wasn't how things were supposed to happen, Lucius didn't want any of the children hurt.
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* After the accidental death of his son, Andrew decides that he will stop Lucius and end the inevitable suffering and dread of the town by killing the parents mercifully in their sleep. Andrew goes down into the mines beneath the town in order to cause a toxic gas leak in the middle of the night to cause them all to go peacefully in their sleep, but he finds a volatile gas vein which causes an explosion, killing himself and causing a massive fire. The explosion awakens and traps the townspeople whom all die of slow, painful deaths.
* As the town burns into the most concentrated ball of dread and dark energy, Lucius looks on upon the town with slight sadness, holding the hands of some of the children he had taken. This proves Lucius honest that he didn't plan on killing the children or harming them.
* Lucius decides that he personally is going to find a place for these children to go and live, and to protect them as well as apologize for the unwarranted suffering they endured, Lucius did two things for them:
	+ He wiped the memories of their original families, while also implanting new memories in both the child and family he puts them with.
	+ Lucius placed a Pardon upon their Soul, so that upon their death, if they were sent to Hell, they could skip the punishment. It's the least he could do for what he's put them through.
* Lucius starts the process of putting the lost children of Centrallia into new homes, starting with the two youngest... A pair of infant brothers named Caine and Abel...

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## CHARACTERS

* Andrew McKay: [A patrol officer and single father of Isaac, whom has personal experience and knowledge of the host now calling himself "Larry Laughter". Knowledge which terrifies and infuriates him to his very core]
	+ Andrews former wife (Elaine McKay) and he, actually made a deal with Lucius in the past before Isaac's birth in order to aid in the difficult conception of their child. They were blessed with two children, and Lucius took his time waiting to call his favor in, but the waiting drove Elaine mad. But upon Elaine's fall into madness two years later, leading Elaine to try and sacrifice both of her children. Andrew had to shoot his own wife to stop her, but only managed to after she had smothered one of their children, leaving only Andrew to raise his remaining son, Isaac.
* Isaac McKay: (Andrew's Son)
* Larry Laughter
* Lucius Morningstar
* (Older Teen Brother)
* (Teen's Little Brother)
* Father Lusac: (Tempted Parishioner)
* Emily Morris: (Temptress Teen) [The teen whom seems to have an innocent crush on the local parishioner, when really she is just trying to be kind to him]
* (Children's Teacher)
* (Bully Kid)
* (Son's Friend)
* The Dawson Brothers ("Show's Creators, Indebted to Lucius, full of regret and terror for what they helped him create)
* Peggy Dormer: (Female Local Journalist) [Tries to look into the story of the show's creators before the premier, finds them mysteriously self-blacklisted, and when she reaches out to them for comment, they desperately beg for parents to not let their children watch the show]
* Coach Ferdinand: (Local Little League Coach) [The Game where we learn that only their town is seeing the show, or even knows about it]

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## TRIVIA

* Originally inspired by the *SCP Foundation* item, number \_\_\_, entitled *Laugh Is Fun*, as well as the popular *Netflix* series, *Stranger Things*.

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