A little backstory for Aria and a location from episodes past awaits you readers! Enjoy!
I don't own Courage the Cowardly Dog.
"Mame, is that a service animal?" the bus driver bluntly asked with a critical eye.
Clutching a somewhat emaciated and quivering purple dog, Aria looked a bit like the people who usually get the bus at 1 A.M. Her pale skin seemed translucent under the fluourescent lights, her brown hair limply hung in a pair of dirty pigtails and her emerald eyes were rimmed with fatigue. Streaks of different hues decorated her wine-colored Lolita dress and yellow began creeping into the flowery white lace at the hem. Her striped stockings and black lace gloves donned signs of wear and tear all over and Aria's Mary-Jane shoes were scuffed until they were more dingy gray than rich red. A plain black, dollar store backpack bulged from her back like some odd mutation, stuffed with memories and traumas that the owner preferred forgotten.
"Yes he is," Aria nodded wearily. "I've PTSD and he helps keep me calm." Not entirely false, she thought to herself.
"Ah, I'm sorry to hear," the driver bobbed his head in sympathy.
Aria dropped the quarter for her fare and slowly walked towards the back of the bus. Save for a goth kid slumped over in his seat in the throws of a hangover (at least that's what it seemed like), Aria was the only other person on here.
And thank Jesus that's a good thing, she thought to herself as she set her down in the aisle seat before taking the window seat.
As the bust closed the doors and chugged away from the stop, Aria sighed and looked out the window as the world whizzed by. Eventually, the charming townhouses gave way to a desolate junkyard that could've been at home in a post-apocalyptic video game. Abandoned factories gazed on with shattered eyes and smokestacks that seemed to belch toxic fumes into the smoggy air, accompanied by a soundtrack of car alarms, snarling Rottweilers and distant gunshots.
The Wrong Side of the Tracks, as the locals named this slice of Hell, was where good will and faith came to die and chauvinism and evil reigned supreme over those who drowned below the poverty line. Nobody ever ventured there unless they got mixed up with the gangs who called The Wrong Side home, and that encounter ended with their corpses strewn across the filthy alleys, slashed and gutted beyond recognition nearly every time. Aria wondered which decrepit shack her uncle was in, shoving a dirty needle filled with potent heroin into his arm.
Another piece of shit in the pile known as my family, Aria spat out of her mind. Seems like I'm the one who even came out as okay while everyone else is getting high as a kite, murdered or shoving their heads up their asses. Would it've killed them to just look around and notice me?
Even then, she added as she leaned back into her seat, I may've become just as bad as they did. I may not be shitfaced like Mom or hot-tempered like Dad, but what do I have to show for it? I at least got taken out of their lives, but nobody had the patience (hell, the balls) to guide me. Unless one counts learning how to sass out complete dicks as a life lesson, I'm pretty much fucked.
A whimper next to her brought Aria out of her angst and she looked down at the dog who saved her. "Courage" as his name tag declared, was pretty much the only good thing that happened to her in about two years. Even though he seemed to revert to "pussy mode" after scaring off her three would-be rapists, Courage could at least provide some protection for Aria.
"A little guardian angel for me," Aria murmured, scratching Courage behind the ears. His neck stretched out further as his eyes drooped shut in pleasure, a barely audible whine trapped behind his closed mouth.
"5678 Beldam Road!" the bus driver called out.
Aria and Courage snapped to attention, the latter with anxiety and relief etched onto his face. The address on his collar...
Scooping Courage up in her arms and securing her backpack once more, Aria scooted out from her seat and walked up the aisle. The drunk goth didn't stir an inch since she boarded (I sure hope you don't end up on The Wrong Side, Aria threatened in her head).
"Have a good evening," the driver said. "Say do you live here?"
Aria balked at the top of the steps and looked out. The faint outline of a brown farmhouse stood without a single comforting light in the window. Save for the windmill going around and around a few feet next to it, the homestead seemed to be devoid of life. This was where Courage lived?
"Uh, well," Aria stammered while attempting to BS an answer. "Yes actually. I stayed out a bit too late and I really don't want to keep my family worrying. Mom's probably crying out that I ended up in The Wrong Side!"
The driver chuckled. "Well I won't keep you waiting any longer," he replied with a small smile. Stay safe."
Define "safe", Aria thought as she stepped off the one safe spot she's been in a long time before walking straight to the house. The bus drove off into the distance once Aria walked a few feet away from it and Courage soon leaped from her arms and began sprinting for the house.
"GODDAMMIT COURAGE!" Aria cried out before running after the dog. "YOU BETTER NOT RUN OFF FROM ME LIKE THAT!" Jesus how fast is this mutt? she thought.
By the time Aria reached Courage at the front porch, she was out of breath and cursing her shoes for not being suitable for running on the dusty ground. She rubbed her eyes to get rid of the annoying particles out for a minute before looking down to see that Courage was gone. Shit.
As she let her eyes adjust to the darkness, Aria noticed the front door slightly ajar behind the busted up screen door. Not a soul was stirring and not even a mouse, save for Courage who was probably sniffing the hell out of the house.
Aria pulled the screen door away, which creaked loudly in protest and quietly stepped inside the dark abode.
And then the Slenderman comes and eats her! Haha just kidding! Slendy's not involved in this fanfiction, though I do have one if you're into hot Slenderman on delusional chick action in "Hopeless Romantic"!
Hope you enjoy this spooky treat and I wish all a fun and safe Halloween! Reviews, faves and follows are most welcome too!