Title The Midnight Game
Characters Ace, Patch, Melody, Teddy, Bon Bon, Lancer
Warning Mature content (dealing with occult-like practices)
Notes This is a prequel of sorts to my story Friendship's Treasure, set before the kids go to camp. They are all either 12 or 13 in this.
"Bad news," Patch said, sitting down on the bleachers next to the captain of her soccer team – who also happened to be one of her best friends. She'd just arrived at the field after talking to her parents (okay, it was really more that they'd had a brief yelling match) and was in no mood for practice.
"You better not say that you can't make the game," Ace replied, head turned to watch her sit down. Patch was the only girl who played on the team – but she was one of the best players. She played next to Ace in the midfield and he did not want to have to replace her with someone else. "Logan had to pull out with an injury, so we're already down our best defender."
Patch frowned and felt annoyed all over again. "My parents are going to visit some relatives this weekend and decided that I get to come with them," she said with a sarcastic tone. It wasn't that she disliked her family – but these relatives were her least favourite, plus she had an important game to play in!
"They won't let you stay by yourself?" Ace asked, even though he already knew the answer to that.
"Nope. I begged my mom for ten minutes, then she just yelled at me that they weren't going to let me stay by myself," she replied, still annoyed – even though she felt kind of bad for yelling at her mother. She wasn't that type of kid.
"Can't you stay with Melody?" Ace suggested, desperate to not lose his vice-captain.
"I could have asked, but I know the twins are sick, and the last thing I want to do is catch chicken-pox." It was just unfair. Patch thought she was old enough to stay on her own – she'd turned thirteen a month ago, after all! But her parents didn't trust her on her own for that long.
"Well, you can stay at my house," Ace offered, "My parents don't care. Probably won't be around, anyway, but your mom doesn't have to know that."
"Why didn't I think of that?" Patch replied, annoyed at herself now. "That should be okay, I mean, my mom loves you."
"Plus it's for a very important cause," Ace stated, "We are currently tied with Bluffs, so whoever wins this game is almost guaranteed to win the district. Why don't we talk to your parents after practice?"
Patch agreed. "I'll let you do the asking, just make sure you open with a compliment," she said with a wink. Ace grinned and laughed before the two got up to join their team mates on the field.
"I don't know if you're aware of how important Patch is to the team, Mrs. Munroe," Ace said, doing his best to sound desperate (which didn't require much acting). "We absolutely need her for this game."
Beatrice Munroe stood with her arms crossed and regarded the two kids in front of her – her daughter (who, she supposed, usually never asked for anything) and her best friend. She'd always had a bit of a soft spot for Ace and happened to see a lot of him, since he lived down the road. "Alright, fine. Patch you can stay with Ace, as long as it's okay with your parents."
"No problem!" Ace said, "I can ask my mom to stop by and talk to you, if you want?"
Beatrice shook her head and smiled. "No dear, that's fine, your mother is probably busy. I'll leave our contact information though in case your parents need to get a hold of us." She watched as the two young teenagers reacted happily to the news, pleased that they'd been able to reach a happy compromise. Maybe it was a bit weird to let her thirteen year old daughter stay over at a boy's house, but the pair were really more like brother and sister than anything else.
Friday afternoon found Ace and Patch leaving school with their friends, currently trying to recruit more of them over for an idea they'd brewed up during the week.
"I don't know, Patch, my mom is usually pretty strict when it comes to me staying over at friend's houses," Bon Bon replied. "She knows your parents are away, so whose house can I stay over at?"
"Melody's," Patch suggested, sure her other best friend wouldn't hesitate to help out.
"But aren't the twins sick?" Bon Bon replied, hesitant about lying to her parents.
Starlight, who'd overheard the conversation, walked up to the group. "You need a place to pretend you're staying at for the night?" she asked, knowing why. Ace had already asked her if she wanted to spend the night at Patch's parent-free house, but she'd had to decline. Her cousins were visiting, so she'd have to stick around the house for the weekend.
"Can she pretend-stay with you, Starlight?" Patch asked, not even giving Bon Bon a chance to answer.
"Sure," Starlight said, winking at Bon Bon. "My mom will even cover for you if needed, she's good like that."
"Come on, Bon Bon," Ace pressured, "Everything is set now. You know Teddy will be bothered if you don't come," he added with a grin. The pair had just started dating three weeks ago.
Bon Bon glared at Ace. "I'm not doing this for Teddy!" she replied, though of course part of her was excited by the prospect of being in a parent-less house with her boyfriend. "But okay, fine. I'll tell my mom I'm staying at Starlight's." She looked at the other girl then, hoping this would indeed work. "Are you sure your mom is okay with lying for me?"
"Of course," Starlight replied, "She's done it for Melody a bunch of times," she said, winking at Ace.
"She has? When and why?" Ace asked, pretending to be upset. Starlight liked to tease him about Melody. She just shrugged and refused to answer.
"Okay then, excellent! So that makes the three of us, Teddy, and Melody. Starlight can't come, sadly, and Sweetheart would be too scared anyway, and Brighteyes would just be a killjoy about the whole thing. Should we invite Lancer?" Patch asked Ace, who shrugged.
"What do you mean, Sweetheart will be scared and Bee will be a killjoy?" Bon Bon asked, unsure what they were talking about.
"Nothing," Patch quickly said, patting Bon Bon on the shoulder. "Nothing at all."
"I don't know about Lancer," Ace said, frowning. "I don't know if he'd be into it."
"Of course he will, he has a good adventuring spirit!" Patch replied. "Go and tell him he's coming," she said, leaving no room for disagreement.
"Fine," Ace replied, "I'll see you back home in half an hour?" He called to Patch before walking in the opposite direction.
"Sure!" She yelled back, before turning her gaze on a questioning Bon Bon. "Trust me, you will enjoy what Ace and I have planned," she said, before telling the two girls that she had to go and meet up with Melody.
"Have fun tonight," Starlight said jokingly to Bon Bon, who groaned.
"I don't know if I want to go anymore," Bon Bon replied, though of course she would.
"Oh don't worry, Bon Bon. Besides, you'll be there with Teddy. What could go wrong?" Bon Bon just groaned again. "Why don't I walk home with you so we can tell your parents about you staying at my place tonight?"
"Alright," Bon Bon said, and together the two set off for her house.
Ace found Lancer on his way to the library, tempted to not even bother asking him. He'd begun finding Lancer a little annoying lately, with the way he always seemed to have an answer for everything (even rhetorical questions). But maybe he could manage to pull a bit of a prank on him tonight if he came. That thought picked up Ace's mood as he jogged up to the other boy.
"Hey Lance, where you headed?" He asked, even though it was obvious.
"Um, the library," Lancer replied quietly, not entirely sure why he felt a little embarrassed to admit that in front of Ace.
"On a Friday? That's lame," Ace replied, hoping Lancer would cave in to peer pressure.
"Well, I was hoping to meet up with Brighteyes, she's probably going to be there working on a project," Lancer explained, though mentioning the girl did make him blush a little.
Ace shook his head and did his best to look disgusted. "Okay, that's even worse than going for yourself. Going to the library for a girl? Well, lucky for you I have a better proposition."
Lancer stopped walking, a concerned look creeping across his face. "What kind of proposition?" He asked with a bit of trepidation. Usually Ace's propositions ended terribly for him.
Ace grinned and slung one arm around the other boy's shoulders. "You heard that Patch's parents are away for the weekend, right?"
"Yeah," Lancer answered.
"Well, a few of us are spending the night there. Patch and I have come up with a really cool game we want to play," Ace answered, challenging gaze levelled at Lancer. The other boy squirmed and Ace tightened his arm. "We need an equal number of girls and guys, and right now we need one more guy. You are not backing out on me, Lance."
"I can't back out if I never committed in the first place," Lancer replied, knowing full well that this idea of theirs was going to go horribly for him. The only thing worse than an idea of Ace's was an idea that came from Ace AND Patch!
"Don't be a wimp, Lance. Unless you want me to tell Teddy that you chickened out before even hearing the idea."
Lancer gulped, wanting to refuse but knowing that he wouldn't. Looking bad in front of one of his friends wasn't cool, but he couldn't handle both of them teasing him! "Alright, fine. I'll come."
Ace grinned and squeezed his shoulder. "Excellent. I'll tell Teddy to come by and pick you up on his way," Ace said before untangling his arm from around the other boy and turning to head back the other way.
Lancer watched him walk off, a little stunned at the sudden departure. "Ace, hold on!" He yelled. "What time tonight?"
Ace didn't bother looking back. "I'll get Teddy to text you," he yelled back, before turning onto another street.
Lancer stood there in shock, feeling a little put out. Typical Ace, he thought. Always the one to insist on the invite, but never the one to offer any actual details. With a frown Lancer turned and resumed his course for the library, though he wasn't sure if he even felt like going anymore.
"We have assembled you here tonight in order to try out a new game," Patch began, standing by the fireplace. She looked around at her friends and couldn't help but grin maliciously. She really hoped no one was going to back out.
"You brought us here to play a game?" Teddy asked with a laugh, clearly not impressed. "I thought we were just going to party."
Patch didn't let his comment faze her. "Oh this isn't just any old boring game, Teddy."
"You're not going to make us play 7 Minutes In Heaven, are you?" Melody groaned, making the comment mostly to annoy Patch. She'd begged both Patch and Ace to tell her what they had planned, but neither of them had caved. She'd even offered to go out on a date with Ace if he told her, but sadly he'd just laughed at the offer and told her she'd have to wait.
Patch glared at her best friend and shook her head. "No! Not unless you keep interrupting with questions," she replied.
"So, if we do keep interrupting then you will make us go in the closet and make out?" Teddy said, grinning at Bon Bon while making the comment. His girlfriend did her best to look offended.
"Yeah, but we'll make you go in with Lancer," Ace said, which got laughs from Melody and Bon Bon, a glare from Teddy, and a frightened look from Lancer.
"Ace!" Patch yelled, levelling him with a glare. "We're kind of on a time line, here!"
Ace grinned at her and winked. "Right, sorry. Carry on."
When everyone's attention focused back on Patch, she continued. "The game starts at midnight, and it lasts until three thirty three A.M."
"Three and a half hours?" Teddy groaned.
"Teddy!" Patch snapped.
"One more comment and you're in the closet with Lancer," Ace said.
"Shut up, both of you!" Patch yelled, clearly annoyed. When both boys apologized and promised to be quiet, she continued. "It's called the Midnight Game, and if you can all manage to keep your mouths shut, I'll explain the rules." She paused before continuing, making sure no one else was going to interrupt her. "Ace, pass out the papers," she said, before explaining the game. "The first thing everyone has to do is write their name down in full on your piece of paper. First, middle, and last name. When you're done, jab a needle into your finger, because you need a drop of blood on your paper." Patch looked around at her friends, ensuring no one was going to make any comments. Bon Bon looked a little frightened, and Lancer was trying not to. Melody and Teddy just looked properly confused.
"After you finish that, then you put your piece of paper outside in front of the door, light a candle, and put the candle on the paper. Then as a group we come back inside, close the door, and knock on it exactly twenty two times. We only have one minute to do this, so there is absolutely no time for screwing around, understood? Once we finish knocking we open the door and each blow out our candles, picking them up and taking them back inside and re-lighting them. Then the game has begun. We've summoned the Midnight Man." She paused then, looking around again. Ace had finished passing out papers, pencils, and candles.
"Anyone have any questions?" Ace asked, now standing beside Patch.
"Yeah," Teddy said quickly. "This is dumb. Why are we doing it?"
Ace tried not to laugh while Patch glared at Teddy and answered. "It's not dumb, and I haven't finished explaining it yet! Once we summon the Midnight Man, we have to keep moving throughout the house, which will be completely dark except for our candles. The goal is to not get caught and make it through the night."
"What happens if we do get caught?" Lancer asked.
"The Midnight Man will make you hallucinate about your worst fears," Patch explained, her eyes lit up in excitement. "There are a few ways to know if he's near. If you suddenly feel really cold, then he's close by. If you start to hear whispers, it's him. If you see a pure black outline of a man, he's there. But the most important sign is if your candle goes out." Patch paused again, looking around.
"If your candle goes out," Ace jumped in, "You have ten seconds to relight it. If you fail to do that, then you must surround yourself with a circle of salt, and you cannot leave the circle until the game is over. While the game is going on, you cannot stand in one spot, or else he'll find you. You cannot turn on any lights, you cannot leave the house, and you absolutely should not taunt the Midnight Man." He looked around at his friend's faces, grinning when he saw that everyone (even Teddy, though he was trying to hide it) looked freaked out at the idea.
"Are there any more questions?" Patch asked, crossing her arms and looking smug. She and Ace had been waiting for this all week!
"I don't know if I want to play this," Bon Bon said quietly. "Isn't it like, actual spirit summoning when you use blood?"
"Don't tell me you believe this crap?" Teddy spoke up, turning to look at his girlfriend. "It's not real, Bon Bon. Ace and Patch are just trying to scare you."
"So that means you're not afraid to play then, are you, Teddy?" Patch asked, grinning in triumph. Teddy had actually been her biggest concern. He was always up for adventure, but if he thought something was dumb, he tried hard to get out of it.
"Not at all! I'll play your stupid little game," Teddy replied, "And so will Bon Bon!"
Bon Bon didn't say anything, frowning at Teddy.
"Anyone else?" Ace asked, directing his gaze at Lancer, challenging him to either play, or suffer the torment of being teased about wimping out. No one else spoke up in protest. "Excellent. I'll pass out lighters and saltshakers." Ace had prepared in advance for this portion of the night, buying six different coloured lighters. He'd purposefully drained the majority of the lighter fluid from Lancer's lighter, intent on scaring the crap out of him later. He'd contemplated doing it to Teddy as well, but decided he'd rather get more creative for the other boy.
"All right guys, it's five minutes to midnight, so we should all write our names on our papers and get that drop of blood. Ace, can you go around and turn off all the lights?" Patch requested, and Ace left the room to do a sweep of the house. While he was gone the others wrote their names down, and one by one everyone started pricking their fingers.
"Guys I really don't know about this," Bon Bon said one last time, holding the needle in her fingers, looking nervous. "I don't think I can even prick my finger."
Teddy reached for her hand. "I'll help you!" He said, with a little more enthusiasm than Bon Bon could handle.
"No way Teddy, you'll probably prick an artery," Melody said with a laugh. "I'll help you, B. I have quite a bit of experience with needles." Melody's mother was a nurse, and had taught her daughter how to safely do a number of medical procedures. She grabbed the pin and gently took hold of her friend's hand, quickly pricking the skin open to draw a small dot of blood. She took Bon Bon's paper and pressed it down against her finger. "There," Melody said, handing the paper back to her friend, "All done!"
Bon Bon frowned and held the paper. "Yeah, thanks, I guess." Ace returned as everyone finished, proclaiming that the only light in the house was the lamp Patch had on the table, and once he finished with his paper, that would be turned off. He made quick work of his slip of paper, and soon everyone was sitting in silence, looking at Patch.
She grinned and reached for the lamp, clicking it off. "All right guys, it's time. Everyone have your candles and lighters and salt?" Everyone confirmed they did, and Patch moved for the front door. "Time is exactly the stroke of midnight, so let's hustle!" She opened the door and everyone followed her to the front porch, laying the papers in front of the door, lighting their candles, and then heading back inside. Patch closed the door. "Okay guys, on my command, we all knock together, twenty two times. We'll start in five seconds, four, three, two, one – go!" All six friends knocked in rhythm on the wooden front door twenty two times, upon which Patch opened the door again and knelt to blow out her candle. Everyone followed suit before picking the columns of wax up and heading back into the house, where Patch instructed them to relight their candles.
"Okay guys, time to disperse and move about! Remember, don't stay in one place! If your candle goes out, you have ten seconds to relight it – if you don't make it, surround yourself in a circle of salt and do not leave it. I set the timer on my watch for three thirty three, so I will let everyone know when the time is up!" She grinned in the glow of her candle, looking at Ace and winking.
"Remember the signs! If you feel suddenly cold, if you hear whisperings, if you see a dark outline, those are all signs the Midnight Man is near! Don't panic, keep your heads together." Ace wasn't sure how he kept from laughing as he spoke, too excited at the prospect of pranking the others throughout the night.
"Can we stay together?" Bon Bon asked nervously.
"It's not a good idea," Patch replied, "It'll make it easier for him to find you. But it is your discretion, though. Just make sure you have your lighter and your salt handy," she said, before moving away from the group. She saw Melody already heading for the stairs, glad that her best friend was so into this.
"Whatever, this is dumb," Teddy said, before moving off down the hall.
"I'll stick with you for now, Bon Bon," Lancer said, feeling just as nervous as Bon Bon.
"Thanks, Lancer. Maybe it won't be as creepy this way."
(Ace)
Leaving the group at the first possible moment, Ace headed for the stairs to the basement. He figured the others would likely avoid it as much as possible in the dark, but he had plans. The first one was to slip out through the cellar door and make his way around to the front door, opening and closing it loudly. Hopefully everyone would have moved off by then already. He blew out his candle and made his way through the basement, having memorized where everything was earlier in the evening.
He got to the other side of the room in record time, slowly and quietly opening the cellar door and stepping outside. He paused, his ears alert, listening for any noises. Nothing except a few crickets and a car driving off in the distance. He kept low to the ground, trying to stick to the shadows, and skirted his way around the house. He crept up onto the porch, looking in through the window. He didn't see the glow of any candles, so he quickly opened the front door, letting it creak twice, before pulling it shut again – purposefully slamming it. He grinned to himself when he heard a scream – Bon Bon, go figure – and dove off the porch, sprinting back to the cellar door.
As soon as he was back in the basement he re-lit his candle, quickly making his way back to the stairs, taking them two at a time. He burst out from the basement to see Bon Bon and Lancer standing in the hallway, Bon Bon shaking.
"What happened?" Ace asked, doing his best to appear concerned instead of amused.
"We heard the door open," Lancer said, "But there was no one there."
"Where's everyone else?" Ace asked, frowning. "It better not have been Teddy messing around."
"Excuse you, jerkface? I was upstairs," Teddy said, on his way down the stairs. "Ask Melody if you don't believe me." She was right behind him, her eyes wide in the candle light.
"You okay Bon Bon?" Melody asked, concerned.
"I'm okay," the other girl replied, though she didn't sound like she was.
"Where's Patch?" Teddy asked, looking around. "It was probably her."
"What was me?" Patch asked, coming from down the hall. "I was in my room."
"The front door," Ace replied, staring at her. "Bon Bon and Lancer heard it open, but no one was there when they went to investigate."
Patch grinned. "Then it was him," she replied with a laugh – half excited and half nervous.
"Who?" Teddy asked, looking annoyed.
"The Midnight Man," Patch replied. "Did I forget to explain that part? When you hear the front door open, it means he's in the house."
"And that means that we had better split the hell up right now," Ace replied, heading back to the basement stairs.
"Come on Lancer," Bon Bon said, taking his hand and pulling him toward the stairs to the second floor. He followed quickly behind her, leaving Teddy standing there staring at them, looking annoyed.
"What's she holding his hand for?" Teddy asked under his breath, before shaking his head and moving to the back of the house.
That left Melody and Patch, who looked at each other and let out a bit of a laugh. Melody moved closer to her best friend, grinning slightly. "The door was you, right?" she asked, certain of it.
Patch shook her head. "How the hell could I get from the back of the house to the front that quickly? The only door at the back is on the patio, you guys would have heard me jumping on the deck."
Melody frowned. "Ace? There is a door in the basement, right?"
"Yeah, but we keep that padlocked, you know how paranoid my dad is about safety," Patch replied, looking around the hall.
"Fuck," Melody whispered. "This isn't actually real, is it?" she asked, unsure how she felt about it.
Patch shrugged. "That remains to be seen," she winked at Melody before backing down the hall. "We should get moving, though."
Melody nodded, watching as Patch retreated back the way she'd come from. As for Melody – she was going to check out the front door.