Disclaimer: I do not own LazyTown or any of the characters associated with the show. This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only, and I make no profit from it.
Author's Note: This story contains violence and is not recommended for younger readers. Comments and criticism are appreciated, particularly as they relate to the craft of writing.
Hope you enjoy the read!
CHAPTER ONE
The bells in the nearby church tower pealed, and Stephanie looked up from the books spread out on the library desk in front of her. "Eleven o'clock already?" she said, as the last peal faded into nothingness. Glancing out the window, she saw the dim glow of streetlights illuminating the dark pathways of the campus. "How did that happen?"
A young man stuck his head around the nearest bookshelf and yawned. "We're closing up. Time to go."
"Of course!" Stephanie tore a page from her notebook and shredded it into bookmark strips, then closed up the multiple volumes of architectural textbooks and shoved them into her large pink backpack. "Sorry to keep you waiting. I had no idea it was so late."
The librarian yawned again and smiled. "Not a problem. Do you have someone to walk back to your dorm with, or would you like me to call campus security for an escort?"
Stephanie shook her head. "I'll be fine. Thanks for the thought, though." She watched the librarian disappear among the stacks as she shrugged into her pink fleece jacket. Lugging the backpack onto her shoulders, she grunted at the weight, then smiled. Good thing she was in shape. She'd never be able to transport all the books she needed for her architectural studies otherwise.
Her mind spun back to the plans she'd been pondering so intently that she'd lost track of the time – her senior project. It had seemed only natural to design something outside of the norm. Something youthful and fun, but full of specialized architectural details she could never have created in her childhood. This would be a treehouse - like none seen before.
Of course, it was just a design. There would be no actual building – not without a client with the desire and means to finance it. Stephanie acknowledged in her own mind that this was her own vision, her own desire. Every trim, every secret connecting passageway, every window designed to allow a clear view of the branches and sky, was her perfect dream.
A smile lit her face. What a joy to find a passion that drove her. She stepped out of the library door and squinted as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Mist hung in the air, settling on her eyelashes. The streetlamps made fuzzy, bright circles of light in the fog, but did little to brighten the space around them. No one else appeared to be stirring in the night.
Something about the fog made the deserted campus very quiet. The silence pressed in on Stephanie and for a moment she hesitated. Then she shook herself. "Silly. There's nothing to be afraid of in the dark."
Pulling a smile onto her face, and pushing her pink hair back out of her eyes, she stepped out into the fog. The library stood on the opposite end of campus from her dormitory. Two different paths would lead her back. One ran along the outer edge of the campus, past educational buildings and several of the other dorms. It would be better lit, but a much longer walk.
The other choice was to follow the path that cut through the wildlife preserve in the center of the campus. In daylight, Stephanie wouldn't have given it a thought. She loved the smell of the trees, the ducks paddling across the pond and the peaceful serenity of the place. On a night like this, though…
She shivered as the fog settled deeper into her jeans, and her fingers began to chill. That did it. The sooner she got back to the dorm, the sooner she could get dry and warm. Stephanie took the fork that led down into the preserve.
As she passed the last streetlamp, she realized that they'd been giving more light than she'd thought in the heavy fog. Her steps slowed as the path dipped steeply into the ravine. She raised her hand over her eyes, blocking out what little light from above remained, hoping to adjust to the darkness quicker. It didn't help. Instead, she reached out for the railing she knew was just ahead. With a few more cautious steps, her hand touched the wet metal and curled around it gratefully.
Encouraged by the physical guide, she picked up her pace, dropping quickly to the base of the ravine. She could hear the quiet rush of the stream flowing down to feed into the duck pond that spread to her left. The concrete underfoot shifted to something more slippery and she knew she'd reached the wooden footbridge that crossed over the stream.
Heavy droplets plunked from the branches overhead, soaking into Stephanie's hair. Down at the ravine's base, the fog was even thicker. Stephanie couldn't even see her own hand in front of her. Her heart began to pound against her ribs. A big part of her wanted to run, to get away from the eerie blackness, but she knew she'd only hurt herself that way, and she forced herself to inch forward cautiously, hand never leaving the railing.
As her fingers slid along the drenched metal, they suddenly contacted something warm and flesh-like. Out of the blackness, a male voice said, "Hello." Then the fingers she'd touched leapt from the railing and two hands wrapped around her throat.
Stephanie tried to scream, but the pressure on her windpipe silenced her. She kicked out blindly, connecting with something solid, and heard a grunt of pain. With fingers made strong by panic, Stephanie clawed at the hands around her neck, throwing her weight from side to side. For a blessed moment, the pressure relaxed and she gasped in air.
"Help! Someone help!" she screamed. Then something hard struck her skull and she crashed to the pavement. She felt the skin of her palms tear against the rough surface.
"Shut up," the low voice ordered from above her, then she felt a heavy weight settle on her chest and cold, slick metal against her throat. "Shut up or you die."
Acting on instinct, Stephanie slammed her knee upwards and was rewarded by a hissed intake of air, and the knife pulled away as her assailant rolled sideways. Wriggling like a snake, Stephanie slid out from beneath him only to be stopped short by a vise-like grip on her ankle. She kicked out with her free foot and heard a curse and the clatter of metal on pavement.
A sharp yank pulled her along the pavement, then fists crashed into her head, her chest, her limbs. Whimpering in pain and terror, Stephanie curled into a fetal position, trying to protect her head and face. Time seemed to slow into eternity, each moment as long as thought, filled with agony.
High overhead, the sound of laughter echoed through the fog, and suddenly the barrage stopped. In the pause, Stephanie gathered what little strength was left in her battered body to lurch up and off the path. Giving no thought to what lay ahead, she crashed through the underbrush, hearing muttered curses and thrashing as her assailant chased behind her.
Stumbling over an unseen branch, she staggered and landed on her hands and knees in rushing water. She crawled forward through the stream, her fingers numb on the rocks at its base, hoping the sound of the water would cover her passing.
"Hey, did you hear something down there?" came a voice through the darkness.
Stephanie's arms shivered and gave out, sending her sprawling face first in the stream. She lay there with her head pillowed on a rock, just above the waterline, listening in the stillness.
Nothing moved. Then, as moments passed into minutes, he moved again in the underbrush, slowly back towards the pathway. As his footsteps disappeared up the ravine's slope, Stephanie finally felt tears begin to slide from her eyes. She tried to pull herself up and out the stream, but pain overwhelmed her, and her eyes slid shut as she lost consciousness.
