2586
"Old people told us that here, nearby, there's another, different world." She said finally. "Same as ours. When we look into water, we see our reflection, but the rest is just blurry image of that other world." (…) "Sometimes when we stand in the evening on a waterside, we hear distant bells ringing in the churches of that other world." – Andrzej Pilipiuk "Wieczorne Dzwony"1)
Warning: Violence and its consequences.
Rating: T to M.
Pairings: none.
Disclaimer: Slenderman © Eric Knudsen (as Victor Surge), 2586 Kroków/Wieczorne Dzwony (and everything it contains) © Andrzej Pilipiuk.
Story and all OCs © Archer Black.
Showdown.
oOo
Holly Cross Mountains. July 29th.
Michelle stood on the road, watching as her parents' car vanished behind a bend, she sighed hoping that their journey would be pleasantly uneventful. With them out of her sight she turned around to get return to her yard when she almost jumped out of her skin.
Right behind her Slenderman stood. The entity appeared in absolute silence and seemed to just stand there, waiting for her to notice him. That or he deliberately tried to scare her. If it was the latter, he certainly succeeded.
"Geez! Could you be any creepier? No, wait, don't answer." She sighed. She could feel her heart racing in her chest from the start that he gave her. "Something's wrong? Something's happened?" She asked while closing the car gate.
Slenderman waited for her to look at him, nodded once and pointed at the house. Michelle raised one eyebrow but said nothing, figuring that he didn't want to speak because of possibility that a Rachman was in an earshot. As she thought about it she realised that it wasn't a possibility but certainty. There certainly was a Rachman within an earshot.
"Alright, come." She led the way with Slenderman following her soundlessly.
She could see that he was looking around trying to spot any Rachmani that was sure to hide somewhere. Needless to say that at least Michelle couldn't spot any at the moment but Slenderman had more experience with finding them so he probably had better idea where any of them could be hiding at the moment.
"Do you like some tea?" She asked when they entered the living room area.
Slenderman shook his head 'no' while he sat on the couch.
"Okay, so what is it that brought you here?" She asked sitting in a chair across from him. "I'm assuming you weren't simply missing company?"
Slenderman cocked his head to one side while staring at the woman.
"I can handle solitude just fine." He finally buzzed. "As much as I value you as an ally I didn't come for your company, I came to warn you about Rachmani."
"I've seen them when my parents were here, you know, they were reckless. One actually tried to hide while wearing hideous yellow raincoat." She nodded.
"I have seen that one." Slenderman confirmed. "But it is not that incident that I came to talk about." He shook his head. "Their testing your resolve is becoming… questionable."
"What do you mean?" She asked. "I've been worried that my folk would bump in one of them but it seems that they've did their best to stay hidden. Except that one idiot in raincoat that is."
"That pratfall was merely an incident, indiscretion on Rachmani's end." The faceless entity elucidated. "In other instances they were perfectly discreet."
"What other instances?" Michelle felt her stomach contract. "What did they do?"
"They continue to do what they did before. Alas they become bolder. I have seen them looking through your bedroom's window at night." He revealed.
"WHAT?" She bellowed. Now that was just priceless. "Why didn't you tell me before?"
"I didn't want to risk bumping into your guests. Or being seen by Rachmani. They would instantly know that I have been watching them observing you."
"Good thing that you at least tell me now." She sighed. "I've been meaning to deal with them anyway."
"You cannot ban them entirely." The silent creature noted.
"Who says anything about banning them entirely?" She smirked in a way that she knew was unsettling to people, though probably not to Slenderman. "What I came up with solved this… What was that?" Michelle's head snapped into direction of the door.
There was something at the entry door. Or at least Michelle thought that she heard something. She couldn't tell exactly what it was because she was talking when it happened and the sound was pretty quiet but with being observed for past couple of months, and knowing it, her patience was running thin. Therefore she took one deep breath and sneaked into the hall as quietly as she could and opened the door sharply.
A young looking Rachman landed on his face at her feet. Thee others stood behind him, one of them looked exactly the same as the one that she slammed her door at the first time she saw Rachmani.
"That does it!' She bellowed. "You've been stalking me since the spring or even longer. You've been following me and I won't even mention that idiot in yellow raincoat when my parents visited. And just now I've been informed that one or more of you, perverts, were sneaking peeks through my window at night!" She was ballistic now. "I know what you're trying to do, but this has gone too far. I demand answers! NOW! On whose orders are you, little creeps, practicing this voyeurism?"
The Rachmani glared at her wordlessly, it seemed that they didn't expect her to discover them at her door, let alone her having such a strong reaction to their presence. The young Rachman that landed at her feet scrambled to his feet and stepped away from the angry woman while one of the Rachmani at the back, the one that she did recognise stepped closer. It was hard to tell due to different physiognomy but he looked irritated or even angry.
"I do not answer to Slenderman's whore!" He growled back at Michelle.
That took by surprise even his companions who started to blink rapidly and look at each other, obviously not knowing how to behave in this situation. On one hand they should support their leader; on the other hand he was insulting the woman whose land they stood on. Whatever they would do, it would backfire one way or another.
Michelle on part was momentarily stunned, many thing she expected but not being called that. Slenderman used her temporary silence to make his appearance behind the woman as menacing as possible. His tentacles slowly unfolded from behind his back followed shortly by multitude of smaller feelers whipping around madly. He hunched slightly and spread his arms a little bit looking as if he was about to attack.
Rachmani looked at Michelle and then behind her at Slenderman, the last confrontation with the faceless entity ended in their victory but this time it looked like the fight wouldn't be nearly as one sided as then. This time around he wouldn't be taken by surprise and it was summer which meant that Slenderman was at his strongest; on top of that he didn't look happy with how the situation was unfolding. Still they weren't about to back down, not from confrontation with that particular creature.
Slenderman on his part wasn't thrilled by the perspective of fighting the Rachmani, he remembered all too well the last fight that ended with him finding himself under Michelle's tender mercies which was something he would prefer not to repeat (not that he didn't appreciate her efforts). Still he wouldn't back down even if it would land him in Michelle's care yet again. Pigs would fly before he would show weakness in front of these creatures, a cactus would grow on his right hand1) before he would be seen exhibiting any kind of submission to them and he would land in hell before he would allow these thugs to offend Michelle without consequences. Not because he owed her, but because he genuinely liked her and appreciated her unwavering reliability – she could have choose to be on Rachmani good side and not side with him, yet she remained firm.
The time seemed to slow down for a moment, just when everyone readied themselves for the brawl a strong voice caught their attention.
"That's quite enough." An elderly Rachman stepped between his younger kin.
Michelle instantly recognised the Elder, Ciril was his name.
"My apologies for this situation." He said looking at Michelle. "It is your land and your authority is unquestionable here." He said and gave disapproving look to the younger Rachman that snapped at Michelle. "
"I remain sceptical about your sincerity, Elder." She said in unimpressed tone. "I highly doubt that you didn't know about their actions. In fact I have a feeling that it was you who authorised this entire farce."
"Mind your tongue you little witch, you need to be showed your place…" The Rachman growled again.
"Silence Constantine, it seems that it is you who needs to be showed your place." Ciril barked at the young Rachman and then turned his reptilian stare back to Michelle. "I do not deny that I did order my juniors to observe your qualities. Although I clearly remember telling them to be discreet about it."
"You have seen the yellow raincoat?" Michelle lifted one eyebrow.
"Sadly I did." The Elder sighed.
"And did you know that they were watching me at night? Through my bedroom's window?" She asked again.
"That is something I have just found out." The Elder admitted. "But I am not surprised. Constantine here has a certain… obsession with you that he has developed after our first encounter."
"Elder, why do you even explain yourself to Slenderman's bitch… "The Rachman known as Constantine started again. His companions remained wisely silent.
"Constantine, enough of your mouthing off. You will either behave with at least modicum of decorum or you will remain silent." The Elder shot the young Rachman a warning glare before turning to Michelle again. "You see young lady, Constantine, despite being quite freshly wedded to his wife who is now expecting their first egg… "The Elder glared at the Rachman again. "He got himself infatuated with you. 'Forbidden fruit' as they say."
"So I can safely assume it was him who was peeking through my window?" Michelle asked and glanced at Constantine who's been seething in the background.
"I believe it is." Ciril nodded. "Now, back to the main topic. Please do not take our surveillance of you as something personal, it is merely our way to test you and validate your resolve. I can promise you that from now on it will be continued in much lesser degree. Constantine certainly will not be involved; tasking him and his peers with this duty was a mistake. From now on it will be performed with more experienced and less brash Rachmani."
"Constantine will certainly not be spying on my as he is banned from my land from now on." Michelle said glaring daggers at the Rachman in question.
"I am sure that you have been informed by… your houseguest, that you cannot simply ban us from your land." The Elder remained.
"On, I am perfectly aware of that. This is why I am not banning Rachmani as a whole from my land. I am banning Constantine. And, after giving it a second thought, his posse as well."
"Of course. This is understandable." Ciril nodded.
"Moreover, there will be no more observations, surveillance, beholding, espionage or whatever you choose to name your creeping around and stalking me." She intoned looking the Elder straight in the eye. "If it was up to me I would simply ban you entirely from my land for this stunt with spying, but I know that I cannot do it due to the fact that you're not dwelling here but merely pass by, but I can do the next best thing."
"And what that would be?" Ciril asked, his face set, his demeanour not nearly as confident as moments before.
"You see, it was brought to my attention that you can walk where you so please because you do not 'dwell' in this this realm but 'pass by', this is what the Law of Obedience is constructed around. And this is what you will be permitted exactly. You are permitted to pass by my land. You are forbidden from loitering, lingering and tarrying. No sticking around, no snooping around and no eyeing up on anyone here." She looked at Ciril to see if he understood.
"I see." It seemed as he did.
"This said, should you require urgent aid, you can come to me. This urgent aid standing for instances such as need of first aid, wounds and accidents." Michelle added. Promising help seemed only right thing to do. "Constantine and his companions are naturally banned from any kind of presence on my land, including passing by. And my previous rule of non-violence stands still." She reminded.
"Then there is nothing left here for us to do." Ciril straightened to his full impressive height.
"No, there is not."
"We bid you farewell then." The Elder bowed slightly and turned on his heel, urging the younger Rachmani away from the house.
Michelle bowed back, turned to Slenderman and jumped seeing his tentacles and feelers lashing behind him. He looked back then back at Michelle and pulled his flailing appendages back in while projecting an aura of utter innocence.
Michelle rolled her eyes and closed the door.
"Smug bastard." She mumbled as he followed her back to her living room.
"Now would be the proper time for tea." He buzzed while sitting on her couch as if it was his own.
"Oh, time to celebrate a small victory?" She rested her hands on her hips.
"I don't see why not?" He asked.
"Fine. I guess it is, especially that you do have a beef with them." She shook her head.
"I recall that few weeks ago, when I was walking you home, you proposed me a late night drink, making it clear that you didn't mean anything strong?" He questioned carefully.
"Yes. And you just vanished without a word." She replied wondering what he was up to.
"I was thinking, may this be good occasion for something with a bit of a kick?" The creature asked. "What would you say about Gunfire2)?"
"I would say that at the moment I do not have rum or any other booze if you wanted to substitute." She replied.
"Such a shame." He sighed and leaned back. "In that case rum tea sans rum3) will do."
"You're a rascal." Michelle replied and laughed.
TBC
1) Extremely inconvenient event for any man. Slenderman is no exception.
2) A morning or warming drink that originates from British army, it is made with a cup of black tea and a shot of rum that are mixed together.
3) A reverse of the good old "rum tea sans tea".