SUNDAY / 12:11 AM

You moved to China, hoping for something exciting. You got a house, settled in, and after a long day of work, you finally flop onto your couch, ready to relax. Scrolling through your phone, you decide some background noise might help. The TV seems like a good idea. You flip to a random channel—everything looks normal… until it isn’t.

The screen glitches violently—pink and purple pixels splatter across the display. Datamosh! You just bought this thing two days ago; it shouldn’t be breaking already. Annoyed, you reach to tap the screen, maybe even unplug it. But before you can touch it, the glitches settle… and a cartoonish hedgehog’s head pops out from the chaos. Big eyes, wide grin, staring right at you.

“Hiya!”

You freeze. Is it… talking to you?

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost!”

The voice giggles, bubbly and a little too loud. The hedgehog leans closer, pressing their face against the glass of the TV, peering right at you.

“Well, I’m Billie! Billie Street-Rat! And you are…?”

The screen flickers, Billie’s grin never fading. Somehow, tonight feels like it’s going to get a lot weirder.