Hey, guys! Sorry for the wait. I had some trouble getting my butt in gear to write . But I'm back! This is a shorter chapter, but I'm actually pretty happy with it. I hope you guys like it too! :D


There stood a tall, thin woman with what seemed like a permanent smirk on her face. She was straight backed and stood proud. She would have, perhaps, been considered beautiful by many men—until they saw the hideous scar marred the left side of her face. It stretched from her cheek to partially off her jaw. Her black hair was sloppy and short, longer on the left to presumably try to hide her scar.

"About time, Madame Bayonet," he sighed, extending a hand courteously. He wasn't entirely sure if she was one of those women who had quirks about shaking hands or not. In the end, she flounced past him, completely ignoring his extended hand, and stepped inside.

"Ah, save the formalities, Dr. Erkhart—"

"Eckhart."

"—Erkhart, that's what I said. Just call me Bayonet. Or Parvana. Or Madame, 'that guy', and so on." She chuckled at her own joke, to which he tried his best to ignore. But there was just something about her manner of speaking that seemed familiar. As he shut the door, he fished deep on his memory to match the voice. He turned back and studied her face. It was the eyes that gave it away.

"You were the bellhop, weren't you?" he growled, shifting restlessly. Bayonet laughed, grinning, and clapped her hands once.

"One for you, sir! Five for me!"

He should have known she may have been in costume. Bayonet's insistence on wearing constant and unexpected disguises is almost a universal fact amongst their colleagues—not that any of them talked to him really, he mostly eavesdropped to listen to their complaints.

Then the smile faded from her face, though there was still the mischievous light in her eyes, and she sighed.

"Fortunately, there's been another attack. I trust you've been reading the information I've given you; we don't have any time to spare here. I can't find a single shred of evidence to guess its moves."

"Fortunately?" Daniel spluttered, taken aback. Bayonet only strode back to the door and began to step through.

"There's a cab waiting for you, Erkhart. It'll take you where you need to go."

"What the hell did you mean, 'fortunately, there's been another attack'?" he spat as she was halfway to the lift. She stopped and looked over her shoulder. The sudden chill in her cobalt eyes gave him ran down his spine.

"You need to see what we're up against, Daniel. It's one thing to look at pictures, but quite another to witness the flesh and bone."

And with that, she disappeared into the lift.

Daniel's shoulders remained tense and he shivered, turning back into his room to gather his items into his bag.

.

.

.

The cab took him to an affluent neighborhood. It would have been a very pleasant, a very quiet, day, had it not been for police swarming about one house. Daniel watched as policemen interviewed neighbors and passersby, and going to the backyard with yellow caution tape to, presumably, tape off the back. The tall, dark trees of the wood were a stark contrast against the neat white house in front of it, and it made Daniel's stomach flip once in his gut.

A very harassed looking policeman stood alone, looking around. When Daniel got out, he came scrambling over.

"You're Bayonet's associate, correct?" he asked, sounding a tad miffed.

"That would be me, sir," Daniel said, eyes flicking from house to house along the treeline.

"Come this way, please."

Daniel did so, weaving through the sea of officers to the front door of the house. Something was wrong with this place; something was just... Wrong. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something different about this place. It wasn't the house, or houses, that threw him off, no. This whole case was really starting to agitate him. Why would Bayonet bother to call on him, anyway? Couldn't she even read? There was literature about SlenderMan all over the world. Perhaps, it was fate. Or, perhaps, it was on a whim and an ocelot with an attitude.

He stepped inside and was led into a parlor where several officers, Bayonet and said ocelot with an attitude, and a very drawn couple that must have been the victims parents. The officers at the table with questioning the couple, whose replies with quick and quiet. Parvana listened and took notes, studying the couple curiously. Daniel began to step around the table to take a seat by Parvana, but was stopped when he felt something grab onto his pant leg. His first reaction was to panic, and kick it until it released him, but he controlled himself and looked down to see a little girl ( she couldn't have been more then five) looking up at him with large, tearful brown eyes.

"Help me!" she whispered fearfully. Frowning, Daniel crouched down to her height. She was perched on the hearth, arms now wrapped around herself as if to assure herself it'd be alright.

"What's wrong, dear?" he asked quietly to match her tone. Behind him, the woman began to weep and her husband try to console her, drowning out their whispering. The little girl's lip quivered as tears threatened to spill over her cheeks. Daniel awkwardly shifted, unsure to console her or pat her shoulder so he did neither, merely adjusting himself.

"I tell them who took Sissy, but they won't listen!" she continued urgently.

"Who took her, Sissy?" whispered back Daniel.

"You won't believe me, like them!"

"I will," he promised, "I believe in many things, you know."

The little girl hesitated, looking over at her parents nervously.

"They told me to stop."

"I won't tell them anything, I swear." He made an X over his heart.

"I saw her when she disappeared at night! I was scared so I went to Sissy's room." She began to shake and Daniel took a seat in front of her, trying to patiently wait for her to continue.

"She wasn't in her room and the window was open, so I looked out her window and I saw her by the trees. She was hugging him!"

"Hugging who?" Daniel asked slowly, though he already had a feeling he knew the answer.

She paused, and when she answered, it was a high, frightened chirp.

"The Tall, Skinny Man!"