Andy was laid back on his bed, the loud sound of his music blaring around him. His eyes were shut, his chest rising and falling in a smooth manor, as he allowed his music to soothe him. What a rough day this has been. His excitement was beyond anything he could imagine, to see his little sister once more. After years of abandoning his previous life, he finally decided to go back to it, with the slight hope that she would accept him as she used to. But, he was terribly mistaken. He squinted his eyes, draping one of arms over his forehead. Figures. Figures he would lose the one person who was always there for him. Then again, didn't he do the same to her? It was only fair.
He sighed, rolling over to face the wall. Well, he dug himself into this hole, he'd just have to dig himself back out. He paused for a moment, trying to decide whether he should try to talk to her now. No... after what happened earlier, he'd just have to wait until morning. A good nights rest would do them both good. Nodding to himself, he pulled the covers around him, not bothering to turn off his music. It could stay on; he'd probably fall asleep to it easier than he could without it. With that, he simply laid back, letting his music soothe him to sleep.
All around the mulberry bush, the monkey chased the weasel! The monkey thought twas all in good fun. Pop! Goes the weasel~!
Andy's blue eyes opened, his heart racing ninety miles per minute. Where... where was he? His eyes frantically scanned his surroundings, as he tried to catch his breath. The first thing he noticed was the bleak sky that hung overhead. It was pitch black, not even a single star spotting the darkness. The next thing that gained his attention, was the monstrous Ferris Wheel that towered over everything else. The lights that lined it were flickering, giving off an uneasy aura. What appeared to be an abandoned amusement park sat around the Ferris Wheel, containing broken rides and carts that were on fire. Toy's were slowly burning, melting before his eyes. He looked away, over at the one part of the place that didn't appear wrecked.
A large tent sat in the middle, black, white and grey stripes covering it. The entry way was pitch black, but there was a large sign to the side that said 'OPEN' in big, black letters. Andy shook his head, knowing this was all just a dream. But... it felt too real. Unnervingly real. Never before has he been in a dream that has felt so realistic before in his life. But, one thing that was for sure, was that he wasn't going inside of that tent. This appeared to be one of those dreams where he was still in control. And with the scenery around here... it was none other than a nightmare. One thing he knew for sure in nightmares and in horror movies, was to never go to a dark doorway that lead to an unknown killer. He slid his hand over his eyes, shaking his head. Damn his paranoia. He couldn't even dream without calculating each and every last thing.
Before he could continue his thoughts, he thought he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He twisted around, his icy eyes scanning the damaged amusement park, not seeing anything out of place. Perhaps one of the burning stuffed animals fell from their carts? Yes... that was probably it. Just as averted his eyes, he heard the distinct sound... of a groan? What? He turned again, his heart nearly stopping at the sight. There, where he thought he saw something before, he saw the clear movement... of a person. Due to the smoke he couldn't see it clearly, but as the thing drug itself forward, he could finally see it's appearance. It felt like ice trickled through his veins at the sight of this... this child, who's limbs were a sickly grey color, their eyes a stagnant white. A bloody, and torn blue dress hung loosely from it's boney torso, as it then lifted it's head.
It's half rotten nose twitched as it sniffed the air, then paused. Andy jumped as the zombie's head instantly snapped in his direction, it's lips bending back, exposing it's rotten teeth as a feral growl tore through it's lips. Instead of the jerky motions it had made before, it appeared this zombie was now keenly aware of it's surroundings, it's sights locked on him as it started forward. The zombie wasn't necessarily fast, but it wasn't that slow either. Now, he wouldn't have necessarily been worried about this little zombie girl, if it had just been her. But, he then looked up to see the other figures appearing through the fog, coming into view. All had their blank gaze set on him, growls and hisses flying from their lips as they advanced.
Nearly panicking, he twisted around, his heart dropping at the sight before him. They were coming in all directions, the only free place being... the tent. He had no choice. He cursed under his breath, breaking off into a sprint to the tent, grazing by several zombie children who managed to get close enough. He barreled through the opening, nearly tripping over his own two feet as he tumbled inside. He twisted around to see how close they were, only to see something else. They were standing at the entry way, staring at him as they did before. Although they didn't appear to be trying to kill him anymore. They were just... blocking the doorway. Damn it... Just then, their eyes snapped away from his all at once, locking with something over his right shoulder.
Just then, psychotic laughter filled the room, chilling Andy to the bone. He spun around, prepared to tackle whatever was behind him. But his eyes only met darkness. He gulped, clenching his fists at his sides. He knew there was something in here with him. He wasn't alone. Then, the sound of music filled the air. It sounded like the light melody of a music box, the tune sounding so familiar... He then recognized it to be Pop Goes The Weasel. His breaths quickened along with his heart rate as his eyes continued to blindly scan the room. The music finished its first cycle, then instantly began again. Although this time... a haunting voice sang along. It felt like ice had filled Andy's veins, freezing him to that very spot as he listened to that voice sing the children's song. But right as the song reached it's climax, a light flickered on overhead.
"-goes the weasel~!" the voice finished.
A spotlight shone above, sending a single ray down to the floor. Standing in the middle of the circle of light, stood a tall, lanky figure. It wore no color, besides black, grey and white. Actually, it was more the lack of color. It's head was tilted down, long, stringy black hair hanging down, blocking his face. It's arms were abnormally long, black claws replacing his fingers. Black and white feathers covered his shoulders, black and white stripes making up his sleeves. Patches covered his grey shirt, and black and white striped pants. Suspenders were attached to his pants as well, holding them up. The figure stood there, as still as a statue. Their clown like appearance was unsettling, causing Andy to slowly back away. Although, he wouldn't forget the zombie children that were still behind him. Just then, the figure's head snapped up, his gaze instantly fixated on Andy.
His eyes were mere black pupils, wide and transfixed on him. His mouth was stretched into a wide smile, his black lips pulling as far as they could go. His teeth were sharpened to points, looking beyond threatening. His nose was a cone, black and white striped like the rest of him. The clown threw his head back, the psychotic laughter Andy had heard before tearing through his mouth as he nearly doubled over. Andy's eyes narrowed, his knuckles popping as he clenched his fists once more. The clown finally ceased his laughter, maliciously looking at Andy once more.
"Who are you?" Andy growled, stiffly standing before the clown.
Another round of laughter spilled from the clowns mouth, sending shiver's down his spine. "Why, that's the same question your sister first asked me!" it chuckled, nearly doubling over.
Andy paused, wondering about what the clown had just said. "What do you mean?" he hissed.
"I'm Laughing Jack," the clown replied, avoiding his last question all together.
Andy raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. "Well, what do you want, Laughing Jack."
"I want you," the clown began, stepping closer, "to leave!" he finished, a giggle following. "You've been nothing but a nuisance so far, so I'm going to try to do this... the nice way."
"You want me to leave my home?" Andy scoffed, shaking his head. "Sorry, pal. But I'm not leaving just because some clown man I dreamed up told me to," he spat in reply.
Laughing Jack's smile then faded, an angry expression pulling across his face. "I see," the clown began, nodding to himself.
Then, the clown man was gone, a puff of black smoke being left behind. Before Andy's thoughts could register, the clown was back, right in front of his face.
"One thing I don't think you understand, Andrew, is that I'm not just some clown you dreamed up. I'm real," he growled, followed by yet another laugh. "And until you leave... your life is going to be a living hell." Andy's face was drawn as the clown backed away, a gleaming smile on it's face once more. "See you in your dreams!" the clown called, it's outrageous laughter filling the air as the scene became blurry.
It appeared as though black smoke was consuming him, making it hard to breathe. Coughs erupted from his throat, burning his windpipe. Andy's eyes then opened wide, coughs still spilling out of his mouth as he awoke in his room. His music was still playing, it's sound filling the room. Instantly, he was up and out of his bed, sprinting out of his room. He scrambled down the hall, nearly busting Tessa's door down. He looked over to her bed, seeing she was fast asleep. A small smile lightened her features, and he partly didn't want to wake her from such a nice sleep. But he just had to talk to her. He was over her in an instant, shaking her shoulders. Her expression appeared frustrated, her eyes squinting shut, then half opened.
"What? What do you want?" she growled, angrily.
"I... I just wanted to make sure you were alright," he replied, visibly shaken. His hands were furiously shaking at his sides.
"What's wrong?" she asked, appearing more concerned after seeing him.
"Tess... I... I had this dream. Of this clown man," he began, pursing his lips.
Her eyes then widened, slightly, not enough for him to tell she knew anything. Then, a knowing smirk pulled across her lips. "Oh, really?"
"Yeah..." he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.
"It was just a silly nightmare, Andrew," she replied with a yawn, leaning back. "You used to have them all the time."
"No! This wasn't a nightmare, Tess! It was this clown, Laughing Jack."
A laugh burst through her lips as she quickly covered it up with a cough. "You have a very active imagination."
"Damn it, I'm not making this up! Tess, you have got to listen to me-"
"I told you to quit calling me that," she growled. "Now go back to bed! I'm tired," she growled, her mood shifting within the second.
Andy's eyes were wide as Tessa shut hers, going back to sleep. Slowly, he stood up, walking to the doorway. He took one last glance of his sister, before exiting into the hallway, feeling lost and alone. He just knew one thing for sure.
And that was that that dream, was far more than his imagination.
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