Item #: SCP-2510
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: Due to its self-containing nature, containment has been minimal. SCP-2510-1 has been moved to cold storage, and amnestics administered to Zachary Amos as well as the McArthur family.
Description: SCP-2510 is a phenomenon surrounding Samantha McArthur (hereby referred to as SCP-2510-1), a 17 year-old high school senior who from 2016 to just before her death in 2019, attended Oakhill Secondary School in Converse, Indiana. While autopsy reports have been inconclusive due to the condition of her body, Foundation coroners have estimated SCP-2510-1 died approximately five months prior to discovery, in late December. Her death is currently believed to be self-inflicted and non-anomalous.
All individuals within Converse will refuse to acknowledge SCP-2510-1, ignoring it entirely when within the vicinity. If brought up tangentially in conversation, those affected will choose to focus on other topics of the discussion. When directly pressed on SCP-2510 or SCP-2510-1, individuals will remain entirely silent. Individuals appear to possess the relevant knowledge, but are unwilling or unable to express it. Individuals pressed sufficiently will refuse to speak with Foundation personnel any longer.1
Discovery: SCP-2510 was discovered by Reba Sinclair, the aunt of a student at Oakhill, who traveled to Converse to attend their nephew's graduation. Upon entering the women's bathroom and encountering SCP-2510-1 she became distressed and called the authorities, who were also subject to SCP-2510. Sinclair then escalated to the Indiana State Police, informing them that the local police were refusing to investigate a death, where Foundation-embedded agents responded.
Foundation attempts to investigate SCP-2510 have been unsuccessful at this time. The initial attempt involved posing as state police, and attempting to question students and faculty about McArthur. Despite threats of legal action or jail-time, all individuals refused to speak about the anomaly.
Attempts to place undercover agents in either the faculty or student population, while being successful, have not resulted in any individuals willing to share information. Attempts to covertly gather information on SCP-2510 have resulted in suspicion towards the agents' unorthodox behaviour, forcing the Foundation to withdraw them.
Analysis of SCP-2510 has identified it as a type of socio-antimeme, spread through social bonds rather than traditional methods. Any attempts by Foundation personnel to learn it would thus be impossible, as no Foundation staff had any social links to the community of Converse.
Efforts have instead shifted to finding an individual that would be considered sufficiently removed from the community to be willing to speak to the Foundation, but also possessed knowledge of SCP-2510-1.

Interviewed: Zachary Amos
Interviewer: Agent Barnes
Foreword: Searching school records for new arrivals, the Foundation contacted Amos, a senior at Oakhill who moved to the area six months ago, in order to discuss SCP-2510.
<Begin Log>
Barnes: Thank you for agreeing to speak with me. Most of your friends haven't been so cooperative.
Amos: No problem. Can we… can we just keep it between us? I don't want them to know about it.
Barnes: We'll make sure they're kept unaware. (pauses) Do you think they'd be mad at you for speaking to me?
Amos: Not sure. I think it's more of an unspoken thing, maybe? Like I don't know all of them that well, but I just… I don't know, get the feeling I'm not supposed to talk about… it.
Barnes: I see. And what exactly is "it" supposed to be?
Amos remains silent, although visibly distressed.
Barnes: Can you tell me about McArthur? Why was her body left undiscovered in a school bathroom for five months?
Amos remains silent.
Barnes: You know what, let's talk about something else for now. Tell me about your life at Oakhill. Do you like the place?
Amos becomes visibly relieved.
Amos: Yeah, it's a good school. I was kinda worried about moving, you know, how everyone in these types of town know each other. Like, everyone. You know what I mean?
Barnes: Yes, I think so. Continue.
Amos: It kinda feels very closed off, from what you see in movies and stuff. But I got over it. It's great. Everyone knows each other, and everyone watches out for each other. No matter what.
Barnes: Noted. Can you tell me about your classmates? Anyone who comes to mind, for any reason?
Amos: Kevin Cosniak and Derek Thompson. They're both on the football team, everyone knows them. Very popular. Sort of the ringleaders of the school.
Barnes: Have you interacted with them-
Amos: I mean, they're kinda dicks, if I'm being honest. But they're not that smart. They get through most things by dumb luck, from what I can tell. That's just what I think of them.
Barnes: …Ah. I'll keep that in mind. But going back to the question, have you interacted with them much?
Amos: Uh, not that much. Like, I'd see them around school, I had most classes with them, homeroom too, same with- never mind. But we didn't really talk to each other.
Barnes: Why not?
Amos: Well, they're kinda dicks, already mentioned that. But I always got this weird feeling from them.
Barnes: Can you elaborate?
Amos remains silent.
Barnes: Alright. When would you say is the last… significant encounter you had with either Derek or Kevin in the past, let's say five months?
Amos: It was at the party. Team just won a pretty important game against the- well, you wouldn't really care. Just meant we were contenders for the state. So Derek invited some people over to his place to celebrate, it's pretty big.
Barnes: Anyone interesting attend it?
Amos: Uh… well there was Derek, his girlfriend Caroline, Kevin, everyone on the football team and our homeroom, a few people from the other classes as well.
Barnes: Everyone from your homeroom?
Amos nods enthusiastically.
Barnes: Alright. How did the party go?
Amos remains silent.
Barnes: Let me rephrase that. How was your mood at the beginning of the party?
Amos: Pretty good. Derek's older brother managed to get some beer, so everyone was having a pretty good time at first. Everyone got pretty drunk, though. Like Derek and Kevin.
Barnes: Did Derek or Kevin do something to disrupt this mood?
Amos nods, but does not elaborate.
Barnes: From what we've seen, most students at your school seem to be in a good mood. Would you say that you and most people disagreed on the incident?
Amos: I think one of the things about small towns like Converse, like I said earlier, everyone looks out for each other. Especially for the football team. No one wants to ruin anything.
Barnes: People didn't want to rock the boat. Even if it meant covering something awful up?
Amos remains silent.
Barnes: Everyone just ignored whatever they did?
Amos remains silent.
Barnes: What did they do to Samantha?
Amos remains silent, and is visibly distressed.
<End Log>
Closing Statement: Due to an inability to gather any more relevant information, Amos was released after being administered a Class B amnestic.

Footnotes
1. While amnestics are able to effectively "reset" an individual's disposition towards questioning, the Ethics Committee has prohibited the repetitive use of amnestics in this manner due to concerns of brain trauma.

« SCP-2509 | SCP-2510 | SCP-2511 »