Chapter 1. Nightmares and Hate
I do not own the rights to any of the characters in the Fable comics, or tell tales game, i also got the inspiration for Red Riding Hood from the author LaNellyxD on the site and her idea for the character, That being said, enjoy!
The woods smelled sweeter than normal, like there was someone else here. Peering from the bushes the yellow eyes of a wolf spied on the girl walking down the path, it seemed normal if it wasn't for that fucking scent that and the red cloak. The wolf followed her as she continued down the path till she stopped by a little clearing with a what seemed like a dozen different flower types all growing in the same spot. The wolf stepped out of the shadows and slowly crept up on the girl before he jumped onto a rock and made his presence known.
"Hello little girl" the wolf said as the girl jumped a little looking at the wolf.
"h-hello Mr. Wolf" the girl said
"please, Mr. Wolf is my father, call me Bigby" the wolf with a sly grin
The girl relaxed as she lowered her guard and put her basket to her side instead of in front of her. The wolf stepped down from the rock and slowly approached her before walking straight past her into the clearing.
"where are you going today little one, the woods are no place for a little girl like you?"
"I'm going to my Grannies, she's ill and I'm bringing her some food to help her feel better" the girl said as she stood tall proudly
"that's so nice of you, tell me where does your Granny live? In the woods or outside of them?"
"she lives in a clearing beneath two large oak trees'" she said with a smile.
"it's wonderful that your doing for your Granny, tell me why don't you pick some flowers? If I was in her situation I would love a bouquet"
The little girl thought about it as she looked down the path and then up to the sky. The wolf kept his eyes on her as the thoughts in his head ran rampant. "she looks only to be 15, think of that tender meat, it would slide off the bone, and her Granny… that would make a wonderful first course" the wolf walked behind her and nudged her with his nose further into the cleary before he joined her myself and took a few daisies in his mouth and placed them into her hand.
"you should pick a bouquet for her, she would love it after all"
"I guess your right, thank you Mr- I Mean thank you Bigby" the girl smiled as she started to pick flowers, getting a steady pick of Daises, sunflowers and yellow Daises.
"good day little girl… and hello Granny" the wolf under his breath said as he started to walk away
"good-bye Bigby" the girl looked up expecting to see him off but before she could the wolf was gone.
A few hours later the girl followed the path till she spotted the two large oak trees, smiling and now skipping down the path the girl stopped dead in her tracks as the door to her Grannies cottage was wide open. Pushing the door, a little the girl peered into the cottage, everything seemed fine but something was wrong she knew it.
"Granny?" the girl said as she slowly crept into the house.
"yes, my dear I'm in my room"
"is everything okay Granny? The door to your cottage was wide open" the girl walked closer to the room at the end of the hallway as the hair on her neck started to stand on end.
"yes, my dear, the wind blew it open but with me in this state I wasn't able to close it"
"Granny your voice sounds terrible" The girl was only a few steps away from the door now as the light from the bedroom was brighter now.
"I've had a terrible cough my dear, I'm afraid my voice has suffered for it"
The girl opened the door as she peered inside to see a large body inside her Grannies bed, looking at the form, the girl saw her Grannies bonnet, glasses and sheets all the way to her face covering most of her body up.
"Granny what great big yellow eyes you have"
"The better to see you with my dear"
The girl stepped closer to the bed, inch by inch till she was by the nightstand.
"Granny, what big ears you have"
"The better to hear you with my dear" the form inside the bed moved as a snout and teeth were now exposed behind the sheets on the bed.
"Granny, what big teeth you have"
"THE BETTER TO EAT YOU WITH MY DEAR" the wolf leapt from the bed as the girl shrieked.
Bigby launched forward from the dream as a small noise escaped his mouth of terror and confusion. Looking around his apartment, he soon realized it was all just a nightmare. He looked down as he saw the scotch glass was tipped over, most likely his foot knocked it over, but the scotch inside looked like it was lapped up by the pig now asleep on the other side of the room. Rubbing his eyes, Bigby sat up and grabbed his glass before he stood up and walked into the kitchen. Looing at the clock he shook his head as he read it say 3:15 in the morning, pouring himself another drink, Bigby took a big swig from the bottle before he set it down and went for his smokes.
"you alright Bigby?"
He turned around as he saw Colin trot up behind him.
"hey Colin, yeah I'm alright just a dream" He rubbed his eyes before he took a smoke out of the pack and lit it. The inhale of smoke seemed to calm him more than anything at the moment, the drink right after that helped even more. Bigby walked out of the kitchen and back to his chair and slumped down looking at Colin in the process.
"what's on your mind Bigby?"
"nothing Colin, just the dream was more like a playback of one of the worst moments of my life" Bigby rolled his head back on the back of the chair and closed his eyes before he took another drag from his cigarette.
"my brothers and the house's?" Colin looked a little concerned
"No… Red"
Colin nodded as a sigh escaped his mouth.
"look bigby you gotta learn when to let that shit go, I'm not even talking about this dream. It's been a year and a half since you let it slip and you sliced Dee but I mean hell when the crooked man attacked you I was sure you were gonna rip his head off and throw it in the well"
Bigby took a long drink as he listened to Colin recall the memories of what happened.
"but you showed the man you really are, you showed the town who you really are, I mean hell showing mercy and sending him to the farm was the right thing to do, the community is a lot better and what's better, not every bodies afraid of you some would even call you a friend"
"some of em, in the mean time I got a few still afraid and a deputy mayor who doesn't give me the time of day"
"Snows just busy with all her new duties, I'm sure she hasn't forgotten about you"
Just as Colin said that a knock at the door sounded forcing Bigby to get up and walked over to it. The knocking persisted till Bigby opened it to find Beauty standing out in the hallway in a gold robe with red roses all over it.
"Hey beauty, everything alright?"
"Hey Bigby, I don't mean to pry but we could here you from up on our floor, is everything okay?"
"what do you mean?"
"you were howling really loudly Bigby, woke me and beast up from all the way on our floor"
"sorry Beauty just some nightmares, won't happen again"
Beauty stood there for a minute as she rubbed her eyes and nodded before she walked back to the elevator while saying something he couldn't hear as the doors closed.
Snow sat up as the Howling from 204 woke her up, looking around her dark room, she saw the time on her alarm clock before she got up a frustrated. Heading to the front door, Snow quickly retreated back to her room to grab her light blue robe and slippers before she stormed back out and to the elevator. The doors opened as beauty stepped out and said nothing to Snow as she passed her heading for the little room, pressing the button Snow realized she was about to confront Bigby, nothing to say and now already on a warpath it really wasn't her night.
Pounding on the door Snow heard the loud grizzled shout from inside before the door opened and Bigby stood in front of snow with a supirsed look on his face.
"Snow…"
"Hey Bigby" Bigby scratched his head as he looked down to the floor
"I'm sorry about the noise, It wont happen again"
Before she could say anything else the door slowly closed leaving her out in the hallway with questions and worry on her mind. "what's happening, why was he howling? Is he alright?" Snow gently slapped her cheeks and walked to the elevator. "why am I thinking like this, is it because I've been giving him the cold shoulder?" Snow set it aside as she walked back to her apartment and tried to sleep.
Bigby walked back to his chair as he slammed the rest of his drink and put out the rest of his cigarette before he sat back down and closed his eyes hoping to get some sleep.
Red's eyes opened wide as she sat up with sweat all over her body, her emerald eyes looked around in fear as she examined her surroundings, "it's okay, you're not 15 anymore, your not in the woods and your safe in your home" she looked over to the clock and saw the time when a knock on the door caught her attention.
"it's open Granny"
The door opened as a woman with white hair in a braid walked into the doorway.
"you alright dear, I heard to muttering in your sleep"
"yeah I'm okay granny just a nightmare"
"what about?" her soft voice made Red feel safe even when she had nights like this, remembering the teeth and howling and screaming and all the blood.
"just the story and the cottage"
"I'm sorry sweetie, you know that was years ago, and Mr. Wolf is respectable now, just last week he bumped into me on the street and wouldn't stop apologizing till I gave him the groceries and walked me home properly"
"he knows where we live Granny?"
Granny looked at Red with a slightly irritated face.
"he's not the same monster he was all those years ago, he's changed sweetie, why can't you see that"
"I'm sorry Granny but it's a little hard to trust someone who did what he did" Red looked over to the clock again and laid back down on her bed.
"all I'm saying dear is that the monster who attacked us isn't there anymore, I'm gonna go back to bed, and you should too you have work at the bakery tomorrow"
"goodnight Granny" Red turned over as the door closed and tried to go back to sleep.
Bigby felt the sleep take a hold when another knock at his door made him jump up with anger as he marched over ready to jump down whoever's throat it was, it could've been snow and he would've snapped.
"Look if this is about the howling, I'm sorry and it wont happen again but you need to leav-"
Bigby opened the door to nobody there but a small package on his doorstep with a note saying "open me" Bigby looked at it with confusion before looking in the hallway to see if someone dropped it off. Giving up he picked the package up and brought it into his apartment. Placing it on the counter in the kitchen Bigby made himself another drink and sniffed it trying to get a scent but nothing seemed to be coming from it when Colin came from behind him with his hooves clopping letting Bigby know he was there.
"what's that Bigby?" Colin said as he tried to get a good view of the box.
"I have no idea, should I open it or leave till tomorrow?"
"the hell with it I'd open it now"
Bigby nodded and slowly took the wrapping as a pinewood box was revealed, a letter sat on top of it with lettering on it saying "to whom it may concern" Bigby picked up the letter as he walked over to his chair and sat down. Opening the letter up he carefully scanned it and followed along with the words:
"Hello Sherriff Wolf,
I'm sure you have many questions and I can say without a shadow of a doubt I have the answers, but I won't give them to you it won't be that easy. Inside this box I've given you the first clue to the bigger puzzle, and the prize."
Bigby took a long drink as he read on with confusion while the hairs seemed to stand up on end with each word he read.
"I do apologies that we weren't able to meet face to face but Instead I thought of something better. I've decided to make a game of this and with each passing day I will come closer to taking someone else, this game does have rules and with each clue you receive you get more and more of them, in the meantime please accept this gift and first rule. I only ask one thing from this game I ask you to play. Stop me, if you can. Have fun Sherriff. -The Boogeyman"
Bigby look at the letter with confusion before he heard Colin squealing in the kitchen, he rushed out of the room and slammed the door leading to the other room as a stench flew through the air and rushed into Bigby's nose. He stepped inside the kitchen almost gagging from the stench the box, now open was protruding, Bigby stepped inside the kitchen closer as he peered inside the box.
Banging on the door stopped Bigby from looking inside as he spun around causing the box to fall and land upside down on the floor. He opened the door facing Snow again but this time she looked furious.
"Snow Let me-"
She barged in and walked over to the center of the room before the smell caught her making her choke and cough.
"what's that smell?"
Bigby grabble the box and the wrapped object within before realizing it was leaking blood, the floor was covered as the blood continued to drip from the purple cloth. Bigby placed the box on the counter before he unfolded the object and dropped it on the counter in horror.
"oh god… is that?"
"a hand" Bigby looked at the hand clenched into a fist with a piece of paper sticking out of it.
Bigby opened the decaying hand and picked the paper up and read aloud what was on it.
"what has a red flag that can never wave, yet when fines are shown they are sent out to be paid? I fuckin hate riddles and rhyming"
Snow looked in horror at the hand on Bigby's counter before Colin crept out of the room.
"what is it Bigby?"
"a hand Colin"
"nope, nope, nope, nope" Colin continued to say as he stepped back in the room and closed the door.
Snow stood behind Bigby as she tried to read the note.
"there's something else to Bigby, on the back"
Bigby turned the note around to reveal something else. "with each riddle you must look somewhere for the next clue, good luck Mr. Wolf"
"who is doing this Bigby? And who's hand is that?"
"I don't know, but I think I know where to look"
Bigby wrapped the hand back up and sealed the lid of the box, immediately the smell was gone, Bigby looked down as the blood seemed to disappear from the ground.
Snow followed Bigby as he went to the elevator. Snow stepped inside after Bigby before she realized she was still in her pajama's and robe which opened itself. She quickly wrapped it back up hoping Bigby didn't see anything, it wasn't anything bad, she was wearing a fitted grey tank top with blue pants, and her hair was tied into a messy bun but without a bra she just felt she should cover up. "why do I care if he see's me like this, there just pajama's"
Bigby popped out a cigarette while Snow seemed to be in her own world, he lit it and took a drag before Snow ripped it from his fingers and dropped it and rubbed it out with her slipper.
"hey!"
"calm down, you should stop smoking, it'll kill you sooner or later"
"I doubt that" Bigby shrugged it off as he looked in front of him seemed a little annoyed with her, but before either of them could say anything, the doors opened to the front lobby.
"why are we here?" Bigby walked out and over to the mailboxes and opened his.
"bingo" Bigby pulled out a letter inside addressed to "to whom it may concern"
He opened it as a red cloth dropped to the floor, he read the riddle inside as he looked over to Snow before he gave her the letter.
"Very good, the forest brings memories most fowl, for the name with the hand, look for the who wears the red cowl"
"what does that mean?"
Bigby picked up the ribbon from the ground as he sighed and grabbed the letter.
"it means I have to talk to someone for the name of whoever's hand that belongs to"
"any ideas as to who it is?"
"how many people do you know who used to wear a red cowl"
Snow's eyes grew a little as she looked at Bigby.
"you don't mean?"
"I Do… I need to go see Little Red Riding Hood"
I hope you enjoyed this, I literary thought it up on the spot after playing through the first season of wolf among us, I had fun writing it and those who have read my other story, I'm writing the next chapter now, school just finished up so I should be able to get into a groove of writing this and that. As always if you wanna leave feedback Id love to know what you think and Ill get the next chapter for this and the next chapter for Wolves Among the sheep out when its done.