"Crossing the fine lines we knew
Hold on and take a breath
I'll be here every step
Walking between the raindrops with you"

- Lifehouse; "Between the Raindrops"


Danny Dare

I thought about him the rest of my shift - Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome. What where the odds that a man like that would walk into this little store? And what were the odds that I would be stupid enough to not even ask him his name?

'It wouldn't have mattered Danny. A man like him wouldn't look twice at a girl like you,' I thought to myself sourly. It was true; I was nothing special. Why would he find anything interesting about me? I sighed. Hey, a girl could at least fantasize, couldn't she? Wistfully I wondered if I'd ever see him again, but decided quickly it was a long shot. Even though he hadn't answered my question, I was still pretty sure he wasn't from around here - probably just a business man passing through...

The rest of the day continued at the slow pace it had been at before Mr. TDH had shown up. An hour before my shift ended I glanced up at the sharp crack of thunder outside. My face fell as I took in the rain splattering against the windows. On the other side of the road the waves were crashing angrily against the sandy beach. Wearily I recalled the fact that I had walked to work today. I was going to have to walk home in this? Lovely.

That soured my mood significantly. Instead of thinking about Mr. TDH anymore, I brooded about the weather. Knowing my luck, I'd get sick walking home in the torrential downpour and be bed ridden for the rest of the week. How would I fight Slender man and his proxies off then?

Oh crap, I'd forgotten about them for a while. Great. That helped my mood a ton remembering that I was being stalked by a monster and his freaks.

So lost in my suddenly onset depression when I left work a little while later and started trudging through the rain, I didn't notice at first the dark Corvette pull along beside me as I left the parking lot.

The driver's side window rolled down. "Would you like a ride?" A deep, musical voice asked from inside the car.

I nearly had a stroke.


The Slender Man

Why was I doing this? My actions didn't make sense! It was illogical and foolish, and yet here I was, driving down the highway towards the little grocery store. The rain splattering my windshield was the whole reason for this mad adventure... I knew that she had walked to work today.

Why did it matter that she had walked. Why did I care? It was water - nothing more! Water wouldn't harm the girl.

A flash of lightning lit the sky and was followed closely by the resounding crack of the electricity splitting the air. Yes, the lightning was bad for her to walk home in. With the flat expanse of the beach and ocean stretching for miles with no high point for lightning to strike, the chances of her getting hit in this area were particularly higher. That was a good reason for me to be doing this, I told myself. And yet that still left the question of why I cared in the first place unanswered.

'She is my victim. I, and I alone will be the death of her. I will not loose my quarry to something as insignificant as an electrical storm!' I thought, growling and trying to explain my own thought process to myself.

I pulled up in front of the store and saw her just as she was walking across the parking lot. The poor creature's shoulders were hunched against the rain and her head was bowed. Already her clothing clung to her thin frame and her hair was plastered to her head.

I turned the car down the side road she had started down and pulled along side her. She didn't seem to notice me and I rolled down the window, a little peeved that this allowed the rain to get in - this was a brand new car. "Would you like a ride?" I asked, questioning my sanity.

Danielle jumped and looked up in surprise, apparently shocked out of whatever thoughts she'd been entertaining. She opened and closed her mouth a couple times as if she had no words before finally mumbling, "I wouldn't want to get your car all wet."

This tiny human dared to decline my offer? Why this insignificant little...

"Don't worry about it. Just get in," I commanded while I fought to contain my outrage. It was just water after all...

She hesitated, but as another clap of thunder sounded overhead she ran around the front of the car and climbed into the passenger seat, shutting the door quickly and cutting off the cold breeze the rain had brought. She sat, dripping and shivering beside me, and I looked at the poor girl in pity; the little thing would fall ill in a state like that. Swiftly I unbuttoned my jacket and shrugged it off.

"Here, put this on," I said, still commanding, but in a slightly softer tone now.

"But... it looks expensive, I don't wanna mess-" she started to protest again. Why must this human be so difficult?

"Just put it on," I insisted, cutting her off.

She bit her lip, and I could tell she was going to try and refuse it again. Deliberately I reached across and draped it over her trembling shoulders and fastened just the top button so it would stay in place, mentally daring her to try and take it off.

"Please sir, if it gets messed up because of me I can't afford to replace it..." she said, her eyes downcast and her cheeks flaming.

"I wouldn't expect you to replace it," I told her. "It's mine to do with as I please, and it would please me to make sure you don't get sick."

"Why are you doing this?" she asked softly.

Oh dear. What was I supposed to say now? 'Because I want you healthy when I kill you?' Somehow I didn't think she'd like that answer. After a quick inner debate, I decided to play like I didn't understand her question. "Doing what?"

"Giving me a ride, loaning me your jacket. I mean, you just met me. I don't even know your name." Her voice was still soft as she spoke.

Great. Evidently, now I had to come up with a name too. "Do I have to have a reason to help someone out?" I said vaguely, and just hoped that she wouldn't ask for my name again. That sounded like a good, noncommittal answer.

Apparently not though. Danielle's gaze darkened. "I don't need help," she said a little forcefully.

I peered at her curiously. This was one strange human indeed. "And what makes you think that?"

Was this little female actually glaring at me? "I've never needed help. I can take care of myself. Always have," she insisted. My thoughts flickered back to her attacking Masky and I contained a smile. Yes, she certainly could take care of herself.

I sighed. "Well then, consider it an act of friendship." Inwardly I winced as soon as I said it. 'Friendship?' Did that word really just leave my mouth?

"Oh. Well, okay..." She was blushing again - I wished I knew what that meant. "But you still didn't tell me what your name is," she prompted.

"Slen," I blurted and mentally cringed. What the hell kind of name was 'Slen'? Silently I kicked myself for my foolishness - usually I wasn't this careless.

"Slen," she repeated as if trying it out to see how it sounded coming from her own mouth. She smiled. "Well Slen, its nice to meet you. I'm Danny," she said and extended her hand out to me.

My initial instinct was to recoil from her touch, but I was playing the part of a human - I needed to stay in character. Hesitantly I place my own pale hand in her tiny one. She had a surprisingly strong grip for one her size, I noted, before dropping her hand just as quickly as I had taken it. That was enough contact for now, I decide, and put the car in gear, pulling away from the curb smoothly. We'd been sitting there where I had picked her up for almost five minutes.

I already knew where she lived of course, but the human didn't know that, so casually I asked, "Where to Ms. Danny?" She directed me down the road and in a short amount of time I found myself parking in her driveway.

She hesitated before climbing out. "Would you like to come in?" she asked shyly.

I actually considered it for a moment. There was a novel idea indeed - someone actually inviting the Slender man into their home. I didn't have to stay long...

But I shook my head, more trying to shake out those thoughts than anything else. It served as my answer at the same time. "Maybe some other time," I said.

Those bright green eyes dimmed a moment before lighting up even brighter than they'd been before, and then she blushed again. "O-okay!" she replied and clumsily climbed out of the car. "Thank you for the ride," she said with a smile.

I nodded. "You're welcome."

With one last smile, she shut the door and ran into the house.

I was halfway home before I realized she had forgotten to give my jacket back. Lovely. I wondered how I was going to explain this to the proxies.