Chapter 22: Search In The Storm

Stine

I paced in the living room, the boys sitting on the couch with Hannah standing at the side of them. Zach seemed to be on the alert. As for Champ, he seemed to be tired. I was surprised that he actually came over because I thought he'll just back out.

I stopped pacing, looking at my daughter. "Did you tell them why they have to be here?" I asked her.

Hannah shook her head. "No..." she answered slowly. "You just told me to call them, I didn't tell them anything else, like..." She trailed off, looking at them.

"Like?" Zach continued. "Like what?" he questioned. "What's going on?" It looks like he wants to know right now. "Is this about the mouse problem?"

This time, Champ was alert, the tired feeling going away from him. "There was a mouse?" he squeaked. "Is that why we're here? To catch a mouse?" He shuddered. "I hate mice... they steal people's food, like cheese."

Zach rolled his eyes up to his head. "They don't eat cheese, Champ," he told him with a shake of his head. "Where in the world did you learn that from?" he questioned his best friend.

"From a cartoon show that I used to watch..." He lowered his head. "I bet you know the show Tom And Jerry. You know? Tom's the cat and Jerry's the mouse. That's where I learn that mice eat cheese."

"Mice don't eat cheese, dude," Zach repeated. "That was just a cartoon show. You need to watch something else, like Animal Planet."

"I'm afraid of all kinds of animals!" Champ raised his voice.

"Okay, nevermind," he surrendered, not wanting to argue. "But really, why did Hannah call us?" He raised his brow up. "If the mouse is bothering her, you should call the exterminator," he suggested, thinking that was the case.

"Yeah, why don't you do that?" his friend agreed. "Because I don't want to go anywhere near that...furry thing," he refused with another shudder.

"No, no," I manage to talk. "It's not about a mouse. It's about something else…" I took off my glasses, pinching the bridge of my nose. I looked at the boys with serious eyes, placing my glasses back on my face. "Do you two promise not to freak out?" I said, wanting to know if they can handle it.

They nodded, answering my question.

I walked over to the window, looking up at the dark clouds. "One of my creations got out of the manuscript." I placed my hand on the window glass. "I don't know how...but he did," I sighed, taking my hand off it, turning to them. "And I need your help." I walked over to them.

Zach got up from the couch. "Which one was it? The praying mantis?"

"The Abominable Snowman?" Champ added in. "Did the Haunted Mask came out of the book? Because that's a really bad thing," he cautioned.

"No, no." I shook my head. "It's my most evil creation of all time," I empathized, not wanting them to throw monster names at me. "Do you...remember Slappy?" I waited for them to answer.

Zach nodded. "You mean the dummy that released the monsters to destroy Madison and the one who attacked Hazel? Yeah, I know that chopped wood," he recalled. "Why'd you asked us about him?"

Sighing, I stared at the floor. "...Slappy, somehow, got out of the new manuscript that you had to help finish."

There was a long pause. It was so quiet that you can hear a pin drop on the floor. The room went completely silent. Huh. I thought they'll...

"Slappy got out of the book?!" I looked up to see a horrified look on Champ's face. "He got out of the new book?!" he cried out in fear.

"Now what did I just say?" I almost angrily reminded. "I don't know how he got out, but he did."

"B-B-But the book was locked up tight!" Panic came to him. "I'm going to go home," he backed out. He got up from the couch, heading the front door.

I grabbed him by the back of his shirt. "No, you're not," I disallowed, keeping a good grip. "You are going to help us find him, too," I spoke harshly. Champ, however, didn't want to do it and began walking. I rolled my eyes when he couldn't go anywhere, staying at one spot as he continued to try to walk away.

"Let go of my shirt," Champ let out, annoyed.

I ignored him. "Let's go." Making sure not to let go of the cowardly teen, I made my way to the front door. Champ broke free, with me grabbing by the top part of his shirt, right where his shoulder is at. "Don't you try to run off, kid," I warned.

"Let go! I don't want to help find that creepy, wooden puppet!" Champ annoyed look went into fear. "Come on, Stine..." he whined, getting pulled to my car with the others behind us. "It's going to storm soon, and I hate storms..." Tears came to his eyes.

I didn't care. Not at all. "Oh, yes you are. You are going to help us, boy. You and Zach are going to search for him at the graveyard."

"The graveyard!?" Now he really started to freak out. "No way I'm going to that place!" he declared. He picked up his foot, kicking me on the lower part of my leg.

"Ow!" I released him. "Hey!" I yelled. "Why did you do that?"

"I don't want to go to that place, that's why I did it," he talked back. "I'm going home. It's much safer there then the...graveyard." He was about to turn around when I grabbed him by the shoulders. "I don't want to go!" he bittered out in a loud voice.

Of course, I kept ignoring him. God, this kid needs to grow up. Besides, his best buddy will be with him with no problem at all. I forced him to go towards my vehicle. "In the car," I ordered both Zach and Hannah, knowing that they won't refuse a simple task. They got in the car and I literally have to throw Champ in the back seat, shutting the door.

Getting into the driver's side, I started the engine and backed the car out of the driveway, driving to the graveyard first.

"You have a flashlight, right?" I looked at the rearview mirror. Zach got his phone out, putting it on flashlight mode. "Okay, good," I confirmed with a nod. "What about you, Champion? Do you have your phone?"

"I forgot it..." he mumbled. "I left it in my room," he explained, thinking like I was going to explode at him for forgetting his technology.

"That's fine," I couldn't help but to sigh out. "Just make sure not to get lost."

"Oh, don't worry, I won't," he promised right away. "I'll just stick with him," he pointed at Zach who rolled his eyes. "Too bad that I didn't call Taylor. She could help, too."

"Does she know about Slappy?" Zach turned to his friend and asked, placing his phone on his lap.

"Yeah, don't you remember? Hazel mentioned him," he reminded.

"Oops, guess I forgot." He shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, Hannah, is it okay to ask you something?" he suddenly brought up.

"Sure." Hannah turned from her seat. "What do you want to ask?"

"Uh...what happened to you when you were in the new book that I had to help finish writing?" That question that he threw out got the car filled with silence. "Was that too much to ask? In case that was, I'm sorry," he broke out.

"No, no, it's fine, Zach, but..." She let out a sigh. "Should I tell him what happened to me in the new book, dad?" She waited for my permission.

"You really want to?" I responded.

"Yeah, I want to," she insisted.

I gripped the wheel with both hands. "Alright, go ahead."

Hannah turned away from her boyfriend and Champ. "In the book, the new book, that Zach had to help finish, I was getting away from monsters. Slappy was so angry that he wanted to get rid of me...so I wouldn't have to see any of you guys ever again..." She lowered her head. "Especially Zach… That dummy wanted revenge on me...for being dad's replacement... He wanted me...dead, despite that I was still a ghost until now... I was in that book for weeks and...by the time Dr. Maniac and Purple Rage caught me, they dragged over to a...well...you know what bonfire is... All the monsters were going berserk. It was so loud that the noise began to hurt my ears, but... I didn't want to show fear..." She looked out the window. "Before that even happened to me, I found dad's house...but it wasn't the same like the real world... It had overgrown grass all over the yard, the roof look like it was falling apart, and the paint was chipped and faded... I even had to get away from the werewolf that was ordered to get me before I found my 'house'. I ran as fast as I can, hiding behind other fallen apart houses to no avail… The werewolf can smell my scent...and I was a mess, too, because I can never have time to shower. I'm not sure if there is any water..."

She took a deep breath and I can tell that she didn't want to cry. "I spotted a car...but I don't know how to drive because dad wouldn't let go to driving classes, no matter how much I begged him..." she continued, her eyes looking at me, then stared straight ahead. "So, without me thinking, I got in one of the cars and...started driving... Suddenly, the werewolf got on top the hood of the car. I tried to shake the furry thing off, but since I don't know how to drive, he just kept his grip, not letting go. At all. I...opened the car door opened again and... jumped out as the car continued to move..."

My eyes widen when she mentioned that, even though she told me this before...with watery eyes...her eyes when she basically told me all of this...

"I ended finding a jewelry store," she went on, "remembering what dad taught me about werewolves. They don't like silver. I ran to that building, only it was closed… all the stores were closed in the book. I found a rock and broke the glass door down. The alarm went off. However, I wasn't worried about that, considering it was just me...the monsters...and Slappy... The only thing I was worried is about not being able to come home...my real home. The home where it's...safe and sound. I ran into the store, looking for anything that was silver. The werewolf was stalking me by the time I found some silver jewelry like rings, necklaces, bracelets. Even silver chains that guys use on their jeans.

I grabbed one of them, and it was long enough to wrap the werewolf's neck, but it was short enough for him not to take it off. When I grabbed it, the werewolf was right close to me that I felt its breath on the back of my neck. In quick reaction, I grabbed a handful of silver rings, throwing them at its face. The werewolf didn't like that, causing it to shake his face like...well...like a real dog would do... While it was recovering from that impact, I went somewhere to hide with the silver chain in my hand. I waited for that creature...wanting it to have it's back to me. When I peered around the corner, I was surprise that he did have his back turn to me. Waiting and, right at that moment, I jumped on it.

I remember how the fur felt. It was all warm and bristly. I clung onto him. It tried to throw me off, only I didn't let go, wrapping the silver chain and clicking the two ends together, jumping off of him, running out of the store. By that time, I found my 'home'. Like I said, it wasn't like my real home. My real home is the real world," she expressed out in a calm manner. Again, I was in that book for weeks, and when I feel tired, I just...go to the house...go to my room...and just...sleep whenever I get the chance. More days went by and by then...I was caught by Dr. Maniac and Purple Rage, getting dragged to where Slappy was.

He was on the werewolf with the chain in his wooden hand. He wasn't happy, telling me that I should be gone for good...not to see anyone. He ordered the two goons to the bonfire like I mentioned at the beginning of all this, that Slappy's monster pals went wild. They were growling, making all sorts of sounds...like...cheering… The noise was too much for me, making the inside of my ears sore… I didn't block the sound out… I didn't want to show Slappy that I was...afraid. I wasn't afraid of any of the monsters, but...their berserk cheering...it was...just too much for me to handle… Maniac flew to a tall, wooden beam, and tied me there. Slappy lit up a match, burning the wood pile. The heat felt hot and, right before I knew it, I felt...strange. I was glowing...in the color of yellow, and to my surprise, I went through the rope and...floated up towards the night sky. It was always night time in that book. And by that time...I was...home. I came back to my real home. My dad was happy..."

I couldn't help but smile when my daughter said that.

"...I was happy," she added, "that I won't have to suffer in that hell book. Of course, I was really sore from running. I was a mess and my hair was a mess, too. I had scratches, and a couple had to be bandage, thanks to dad. I was hungry; starving, from not being able to eat when I was in that new manuscript, that I ended up eating everything from the fridge. Dad didn't care, at all. I even took a long shower after I was done eating. And the next day...the school reopened. Dad took the job as being the new English teacher. At first, he wanted me to wait awhile longer to see Zach, but I wanted to see him right away since he wouldn't let me when I was written back into the real world the other day. So he told me to wait after school. And that's what I did. I got back together with Zach and we got together...like boyfriend and girlfriend."

After her story was finished, both boys were quiet. I believe that they were surprised on what happened to her in that book. I was shocked when I rewrote her back into existence when I saw the state that she was in. She was a mess...her hair was all tangled and matted...and she was starving. God, I can't believe I never wrote the characters to eat! I should've have done that. Only it wasn't my fault, and my daughter knows that. I just can't believe that Slappy tried to get rid of her with a bonfire. I really need to speak to him, telling him what he did was wrong. Including what he did to Hazel.

Now that I think about her, I miss her. I...really want to go back to that place, that mental hospital and to just...bring her home. But I can't, not until she gets better. My hands clenched the steering wheel, my hands aching.

She was right about blaming the people who made her have the feelings she now has. The kids who made her quit school at a very young age, her god parents abusing her, especially her god father, and her older god brother. I mean, just because she wasn't their real daughter doesn't mean they can treat her that way. I'm a dad and I never treated my own daughter with such cruelty. I never lay a hand on her or hit her.

Of course, when Hannah let out that scream...it sounded like I was hurting her. But I was just out of control, my anger taking over me when I grabbed her book off my bookcase, about to trap her back in so she would never see Zach ever again.

However, I didn't watch where I was going just as I was about to unlock her manuscript, where I ended up tripping over the lamp cord, scaring my daughter when the lights went out.

I remembered that terrified look that she gave me when I recovered just as I plugged in the lamp back on after I set it on the table, feeling lucky it never broke for how expensive they are. I felt bad...feeling like a terrible father.

Hazel is right, about not being a perfect dad, with me agreeing with her, saying that not all parents are perfect.

I was so overprotective of my daughter then that I always make sure she stays in the house, even though she confessed to me at the grocery store that she sneaks out during the night after I go to bed, and yes, I got mad at her. Hech, there had been a time when someone knocked on my door back in Chicago when I went with the name of Ghoulberg, and Hannah answered the door before I could.

While she was chatting happily with someone, it looked like she made a friend from the conversation she was having with this person, that she almost went out the door by the time I grabbed her, pulling her back into the house, making sure she was behind me, telling to whoever person she was talking with to leave.

At first that person was shocked, telling me that he saw us move into the house a few weeks ago, came over, and asked if my daughter can hang out with him, but I told him no and to scram or else I was going to call the police on him.

The kid assured me that it was only two houses down from mine, only I wasn't having it. So I gave him my eerie look, giving him a sharp and reluctant stare. He got the message off the bat. I remembered his facial expression when I did that.

Remembering when he left my front yard, I was glad that I did that because I didn't want Hannah to go with him in case something bad will happen to her.

But Hannah didn't seem happy to the point where she got mad at me... wanting to know why I wouldn't allow her to have friends. I told her but that didn't make her feel any better. Not only that, whenever I have to go out and do some errands, she'll ask me if she can come with me. I ended up telling her no.

She told me it wasn't fair, saying that she should tag along. Again, I had to forbid her from doing that. Hannah never liked it when I do that.

There were even times, during the night time hours, I'll get up from the couch to check on her while she was asleep in her room. I don't know why, but I had to. She never knew, though, and I never told her about it.

Whenever someone knocks on my door, I had to order Hannah up to her room before I would even answer it. And yes, she didn't like that, but did it anyway to avoid arguing.

As the years went on from moving from one town to the next, I made sure that I kept her safe from strangers...even though they were nice, I knew what would happen in case she went with them.

I felt bad for doing that to her. I really did. Parents are supposed to keep their child safe...right? But I knew that I went a bit overboard for doing that to Hannah and, when I rewrote her back into the real world, I gave her the freedom she wanted. I still keep her safe, only this time, I won't go over the top with it.

Speaking of keeping children safe… Why did her god parents abuse her? Why? They're such...jerks for doing that to her. And I don't know them at all. Man, if I ever met up with any of those two hell people or her god brother, I'll make sure that they would never go near Hazel again.

The thought of that made me want to get Hazel right now. Except, it'll take me hours to get to that special place she was at considering that it's not in Madison, somewhere in Delaware.

Hmm, I should pick her up early in the morning and have lots of coffee whenever the staff members call me to come get her.

"Wait, Slappy tried to kill you? Even though you were a ghost until now?" Zach broke the silence, slicing my thoughts away, talking to Hannah. Wow, I guess he was processing on what my daughter told him. "You know, since tomorrow is Friday, I'm going to make sure he doesn't go near you."

"No, Zach, I'll handle him," I spoke up. "He's my creation, I know how to deal with him." Oh yeah, I'm really gonna deal with a wooden... the word left my head when we got to the graveyard. I faced towards the boy. "Now if you see him, call me. Don't try to grab him or anything," I instructed them.

"Got it." Zach nodded his head. "Let's go, dude," he directed to his best friend.

"I wish I never forgotten my phone..." Champ couldn't help to let out a whimper. "I'll just stay in the car..." he decided, thinking it the best idea.

"Champ...you better go to that graveyard..." I warned.

"I don't want to!" he shouted loudly, not budging from his seat.

I cast an evil glare at him. "Go. To. The. Graveyard..." Champ, however, kept on refusing. "Do it, or else I'll pull your ear," I then threatened.

"Okay, okay, okay, okay." Quickly getting my message, he scrambled out of my car after Zach got out. "But when will you come get us?" he questioned.

"When Zach calls me," I briefly answered, wanting to get to the next location as possible. "I'm gonna drop Hannah off at the old amusement park."

Zach raised a brow. "Are you sure she's going to be fine lookin' for that devil doll?"

"Yes. Now go on." Without another spare word, I started driving again, leaving the boys at the Graveyard.

"You know that they're gonna freak out once you tell them the real reason on why he's out of the new manuscript," Hannah brought up.

"I just have to break it to them gently..." I responded. "Let's hope that Champ doesn't freak out the most," I wished, stopping at a red light. "I know how he is when it comes to these kinds of things."

"Yeah, he is a...scaredy-cat," she agreed with me.

I smirked. "I thought your boyfriend was the scaredy-cat," I slide out, grinning.

I felt her suspicious eyes on me. "...when did you know that? I never told you that I call Zach a scaredy-cat sometimes," she told me in slight confusion.

"I..." The light turned green and I continued driving. "...looked into your new phone, reading you guys' text messages," I confessed.

"Dad!" I didn't have to see the look on her face, knowing already that she was beyond shock. "You... You went through my text messages?" she let out in a exclaiming tone. "Why would you do that?" she asked.

"Hey, I have to," I defended. "I just wanted to know what you two will be chatting about on the phone."

"Well, you shouldn't have looked through my phone, at all." She turned away from me.

I let out a chuckle. "Sorry, sweetheart, but I had to." I looked over for a quick second to see Hannah looking at me again. "You want to know why I have to do it?" I asked, changing my demeanor, giving her a serious look.

She thought about it. "No, I don't know why." She rolled the window down, letting fresh air in. "Tell me," she insisted.

"Alright, alright, alright, I'll tell you. I just wanted to make sure that he's texting appropriately." I gave her a stern look. "And to make sure he isn't sending...pictures," I put in next.

Hannah gave me a confused look. "Wha-? What do you-?" Her eyes widen. "Ew, dad, why would you think that?" she proclaimed, realizing what I was talking about. "Zach would never send me something like that to my phone."

"I know..." I then pressed down on the break. "We're here," I then announced, pointing out at the passenger window. "You know what to do, right?"

Hannah grabbed the car door handle and nodded, remembering what I told the boys. "When I see Slappy, don't do anything and call you." Hannah pushed the door open, looking up at the dark, stormy clouds. "And we better find that wooden freak, too, before it starts raining."

"Don't worry, I have an umbrella." I pointed behind me from my seat, showing her where it was at. "I'll be over at the school grounds." With that, after Hannah shut the door, I made my way to the high school, hoping...just hoping, that Slappy is there.

It only took me about fifteen minutes to get to the school. Of course the school is closed at this time, so no one is in the building. Not even the principal. I grabbed my school key that all teachers have for security reasons and my umbrella in case it starts to pour down rain.

FLASH... KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

Lightning streak over me, along with a loud crack of thunder from the dark clouds.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

A second crackling thunder, making the clouds sound angry, very angry, like God is mad about something. I felt a cold breeze, making me shiver. Too bad that I didn't bring a jacket with.

FLASH...

The lightning came again; flickering, like a lit up candle that is about to get blown out. Or a light bulb that isn't working anymore.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

The snapping and crackling came through the third time when I felt a wet drop on my shoulder, then another one. I opened up my umbrella that is in the color of black, holding it as the rain pattered down on it, protecting my head from getting wet.

I made my way to the school, listening to the thunder, lightning flashing above me.

The rain fell harder with each step I took. By the time I got to the office entrance of the school, I slipped my key in the key hole and unlocked the door, pulling the key out and putting it in my pocket.

Entering the building, I closed the umbrella up. No need for bad luck, now… I kept the lights off, taking out my phone from my other pocket.

Turning my phone on, I set it on flashlight mode before walking out of the office and into the hallway.

I have to admit, walking down the hallways this late a night, when the school is closed until morning, it's kinda...creepy… My formal shoes clomped on the school floor.

At least it's not like that one Goosebumps book that a wrote titled The Haunted School.

Heh… When I released that book, a lot of my bullies were too terrified to go to their own schools. It made me...proud of what I did, glad that I can scare my bullies away that made fun of me when I couldn't go outside to play.

But Slappy did a great job of keeping me safe from them...until what he did to them. The memory swept into my head, swimming around. I told Slappy what he did was wrong, but he didn't care...not at all.

With the years that passed by, his job has gotten to the point where it was just...sigh, he just went too far on both keeping me safe and the pranks that he did. We also used to get along...before Slappy would pick arguments with me, telling me what he did was right to what he did to my bullies.

So… I did something that I regretted. Locked him up in a pages of a book when he got out of control.

I stopped to glance at my Smith Corona...the memories of me having that...magical typewriter...writing my own stories, making my own friends that are monsters... I felt...isolated and alone… the monsters that I made kept me safe...but they too, got out of control... just like Slappy...

Staring at my typewriter, I almost had the urge to write another story... But I quickly stopped myself.

The light from my phone created shadows on the walls. I heard a furnace go off from somewhere, making me cry out in alarm. I let out a sigh, muttering to myself.

"Come on, Stine, it's just a school... It's not haunted or anything..." I forced myself to start walking again. "Now...if I were Slappy, where would I be...?" I thought out loud. "I know..." I picked up my pace, making my way to the auditorium. The place where he found me and Hazel, breaking my fingers in the process, preventing me to continue to finish the story. Glad that Zach finished for me when I held off the Blob monster with Slappy tormenting me...watching me get devoured by the pink goo.

I walked faster, picking up my pace. And when I got to the auditorium, I placed my hand on the door and, to my surprise, it opened.

I shined my light, stepping into the room. "Slappy?" I whispered loudly, not worried about anyone hearing me. "Slappy, are you here?" I called out quietly, walking down the aisle, the carpet in the color of red. I made my way to the stage, climbing up the steps to the top of it. "Slappy?" As I continue to call out, the building shook, having me feel it beneath me from the rumbling outside from the storm. I went over to the table, seeing the image of him breaking my fingers… "Slappy?" I shook the memory out of my head. "Slappy, where are you?" I said, making my way over to the stage curtain. I grabbed the fabric, pulling it to the side, my light beaming from the other side of the stage. "Slappy?" Nope, he's not here, either.

Letting go of the curtain, I went back to the small staircase, getting off the stage, looking at all the row of seats.

"Is he under one of these seats...?" I wondered, talking to myself. "I better check..." I decided. I went down the first to the last from the left side of the room. I did the other side.

No luck. I can check the school library...

Believing that's a good option, I made my way out of the auditorium, heading to the library, listening to the heavy rain that is being released from the sky, hitting the school roof that is above me.

Walking up to the school library, I made my way inside, the light hitting the bookcases filled with lots of books of all kinds.

I went down each aisle of the bookcases, just to see in case he's sitting on the floor or on the bookshelves.

He wasn't... God, where is he? I can't check any of the classrooms because all the rooms are locked.

Stepping out of the library, I walked down the hallway, peeking into each classroom, looking to see if he's in any of them.

He wasn't. Not even in my English classroom. So...where is he? Where's Slappy? Is he at the gym?

Probably, I answered my own question in thought. He could be underneath the bleachers... Yeah, I think he is... One way to find out is to check.

Shining my phone light down the hallway, I made my way to the gymnasium, as another rumble went over me from outside.

I wonder how long the storm will last...

Reaching the door of the gym, I pushed it open. My light made some shadows and I let out a sigh when the bleachers are closed up.

"Slappy... where can you be?" I asked out loud. "I should call Zach, seeing if he and Champ have any luck..." I took out my phone, dialing Zach's number. I know I told him to call me in case he finds Slappy, but I decided to call him first.

"Yeah, hello," Zach's voice flew in after answering the first ring.

"Hey, Zach, any luck finding Slappy?" I talked into the phone. There was silence. "Hello?" I spoke, wondering if he's still on the phone with me.

"...No... So far we hadn't found him," he finally told me, answering my question. "And it's raining really heavy, too," he put in. "Plus, Champ screamed like a girl when that loud, cracking thunder came before the water started falling on us," he added.

"Hey!" Champ's voice came through the phone. "It's not my fault that I scream like that!"

"Do you boys need any help?" I decided to offer.

Pause. "Yeah...we could use your help..." Zach replied finally. "We're over at the gates when we escaped from the ghouls."

"I'll be there." After that, I hung up. Then with a quick turn, I made my way back to the office, wanting to get out of the school as quickly as possible. Being in this building in a stormy night is just too… eerie… It sent chills down my arms just thinking about it.

Again, it's not like that The Haunted School from one of my Goosebumps manuscripts.

God... I can't believe I had written thousands of monsters... It made me...proud and happy... But when they went too far from scaring my bullies...I have to lock them back inside and sell the safe copies to those...imbeciles.

The only monster that I keep out from his manuscript... is Slappy...

But like I stated before, he too, also went too far of protecting me...his pranks to the point where they aren't...humorous anymore...

"I was your best friends, and you turn your back on me." Guilt came over me when the memory of him came to me again, while he was watching me get devoured by the Blob. "Locked me up in a pages of a book..." My eyes clenched shut, like I was trying to control my water works. "You put me on a shelf for years and years... The key was right there... And you never used it..."

I opened my eyes, failing to keep a tear from running out from the corner of my eye. "Slappy..." I manage to say. "...I didn't betray you... at all. I did that to you because...because it was for your own...good…" I should tell him that once we find him. Adding to that, I want to make sure he's still willing to apologize to Hazel for what he did to her, because...he does...lie at times. So the only way to find out is to make sure.

That's when another thing came into my mind. What if he does say sorry to her and then attacks her again when she was trying to stop him? Or...what if Hannah is right? Will he stab us in the back once he's reformed?

Don't worry, Stine, I began to reassure myself. You'll get to change his ways… it just takes time. Besides, you didn't really like anybody, thanks to those who made fun of you. All because you had terrible allergies. But after putting everything back in the book, you decided to stop hiding from other people, realizing how wrong you were about this world… You even took a job at the high school to be the new English teacher. Hm, it's kind of weird...and funny, to be Zach's neighbor and his English teacher.

At least his mom is the new vice principal...

Making my way back to the office, I went in, going to the front door, opening it, then locked it with my key. I opened up my umbrella, almost getting drenched in the rain, walking back to my car.

Getting into the vehicle, I closed up my umbrella, putting it behind the driver's seat and shut the car door shut.

Placing my car keys in the ignition, I started the car, turning the windshields on, wiping the heavy drops as it continued to pour down heavy rain on the front window.

Stepping on the gas pedal, I got off the school parking lot, making my way to the graveyard to meet up with the boys.

Zach

Walking into the graveyard was pretty...terrifying. After Stine left to drop Hannah off somewhere, and I have no idea where he went to look for that...evil doll that should've been turned into firewood.

"Ohh..." Champ whimpered nervously, slowing down his pace, getting a bit far behind. "Why couldn't we look for that...creepy thing in the daylight hours?" he said.

"Dude, come on," I ushered, shining the light from my phone in his face. "You need to keep up. Besides, if we can't find him, I can call Stine to help us."

"Alright, alright, you don't need to blind me, dude," he replied once he was able to see again, blinking his eyes several times. He looked up at the dark clouds and I did that, as well. They look mean and, to be honest, frightening. "I wish I was at home.."

FLASH... KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

"Ahh!" His scream made me jump when a flash of lighting came over from the dark clouds, letting out a cracking thunder.

"Dude, relax, it's just a-"

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

"-thunder storm," I finished, not startled at all by it, both of us feeling a cold breeze. I shivered, wishing that I brought a jacket with as me and him continued to walk through the graveyard, the flashlight helping us to see.

FLASH...

The lightning went off again, like a light bulb that doesn't work anymore. Champ took a deep breath. "Alright, Champ," he began assure himself, trying to act 'cool'. "Your best friend is right, it's just a-"

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

"Ahh!" Another scream came out of his mouth as another snapping and crackling thunder came through the third time. "I'm getting out of here!" He was about to run back to where we got dropped off, but I grabbed him by the shirt. "Zach, dude!" he exclaimed, ripping his shirt out of my hand, having me stop in my tracks.

"What?" I didn't want to stop looking for that demon doll. "Dude, we have to find that creep," I told him. "If we don't, he's gonna do something very bad, then it'll be too late to put him back in the manuscript that as all the other monsters in it," I reasoned, starting to feel water on me. It started off with one drop before raining heavily on us.

Champ brushed his fingers over his head. "...okay, I'll...I'll not run off," he promised, agreeing with me.

Yeah...right. We continued walking with no luck finding him. "I can't believe your afraid of everything."

He gave me a defensive look. "At least I saved Taylor from that werewolf," he responded, recalling that event that happened at the high school.

"Yeah, with silver fillings," I had to add in.

He let out beaming grin. "That's right, my friend." He patted me on the shoulder. "It's awesome how both of us got girlfriends…" A frown came to him when he started thinking. "Do you think that Hazel will get into a relationship? You know. Since you, me are in a relationship, including Stine who is dating your aunt."

I shrugged my shoulders at his words. "...I'm not sure..." I answered in reply. "The thing we want to see from her is a smile..." The thought of Hazel not being able to be happy made me...sad. "All of us feel bad for what happened to her when she was real little… I mean, what kind of god parents abuse their children? Just because she's not their biological child, doesn't mean that they can be..." I stopped. "...cruel to them."

Champ nodded. "...yeah..." I then felt him look at me. "Whoa! Dude, are you okay?" he suddenly cried in alarm. I gave him a confused look, not knowing what he's talking about. "You're crying," he pointed out.

"No, I'm not." Quickly, I flicked a tear off my cheek. "There...was something in my eye," I explained. "I-I wasn't crying."

"Don't say that," he disbelieved. "Be honest," he convinced me. "You had that same feeling when Hannah told you to let her go when all the monsters were getting sucked into the new book."

"I wasn't crying!" I half yelled. "Okay... I was," I admitted with a sigh. "Just a little... It's..." I wiped a leaf that somehow got on my shoulder. "...I can never understand why her god family could be...mean and abusive towards her. Hannah stated that Jeff hits Hazel all the time...for no reason at all! Kelly yells at her and Travis is just...not very nice."

"Not all family members are nice. Some...are asses to other children." The smile came back on his face, patting me on the shoulder. "Besides, she's living with Stine. Maybe when she gets home, he'll adopt her."

I grinned, too. "Maybe... He's a good dad. Even though I thought he was a psychopath after me and Hazel heard Hannah scream...like he was hurting her or something."

As we kept walking, I can feel the rain water soak through my clothes. "Brr," I shuddered. "The rain is cold..." I shivered again, the hair on my arms rising, feeling...goosebumps on them.

"I wish..." Champ shuddered as well. "...I brought a jacket. Why can't we have spring now?" he complained as another cold shiver ran down his back.

"The reason it's not spring yet is because it's winter. And it's still March."

Champ complained again right after I gave him my answer. "Why can't months go by faster...?" He then let out a cry when there was a loud snap sound. "W-What was that?" he stammered.

I looked down, seeing that I stepped on something in half. I picked it up, both halfs, in my hand since I have my phone in the other one. I looked over at my friend.

"It's just a stick." I tossed the two pieces aside, watching it smack on one of the old gravestones, and we continued to look for that dummy.

Several minutes went by with no luck at all. Me and Champ checked behind every gravestone that we spotted.

How hard is it to find that chop wood? I was starting to get irritated. What if my girlfriend found him and he attacks her like he did to Hazel?

I stopped and Champ bumped into me. "Sorry," he said.

Shrugging it off, I shined my light all over the graveyard, seeing if I can spot Slappy. "How did he got out of the new manuscript?" I wondered, making myself walk again with Champ by my side. "The final words that I wrote was this: Never to be seen again. How can he possibly get out that...book that I have to help finish?"

Champ thought about it. "I wish I knew... But Stine will know what to do."

"Yeah..." I shook my head up and down.

We kept on looking with no success at all. We couldn't find Slappy anywhere!

We manage to reach the iron gates that we use to escape the ghouls to get to the high school, including those Sadler ghosts that came up to us. I was amazed that Hazel hit one that on the side of his head with a stick that I picked up to defend myself, ready to swing at them in case they attacked, but no, she was the one that did it, surprising all of us. For not being able to smile, she sure can stand up for herself and us.

I gripped the metal gates, seeing if I can open it.

No. No success. The chain prevented the gate from fully opening, just like last time. Me and Champ still can get through, only it's easier when someone holds it open for us, like Stine did.

I picked my phone up from my side, having the light peer at the woods, and that's when it hit me. "I'm sure if I'm right or wrong, but Slappy could be in those woods." I pointed the dark trees, referring to what I mean.

"Oh no, dude…" Champ let out a low moan, covering his eyes. "No. I...I can't. I'll just stay here…" He stopped for a second, taking his hands off his eyes. "Hey, why don't you go and I'll wait for Stine," he suggested.

I gave him a quirked brow, then let out a gasp and pointed. "Dude! There's a zombie!"

"Where!?" Champ jumped in alarm, turning around as fast as he could. "Where!?" he replied in repeat, until I burst out laughing. He gave me an angry look. "Not funny, Zacharias!" he fumed. "I thought you were being..."

"Serious?" I completed. "God, chill out, man. It was just a joke. It seems like you fall for everything."

Champ took a deep breath in and let it out. "Yep. But it wasn't funny when those monsters got released by that creepy, wooden doll," he remarked, pointing out the night that it happened. "It was also cloudy, too," he added.

That's when my phone started to ring, startling both of us since all we can hear is rain falling from the sky.

I looked answered it right away, thinking it was Hannah. "Yeah, hello."

"Hey, Zach, any luck finding Slappy?" It was Stine, not my girlfriend. "Hello?" I heard him speak, since he literally made me think it was her, calling for help.

"...No... So far we hadn't found him," I answered, getting words out of my mouth. "And it's raining really heavy, too." I looked at my best friend before saying anything else. "Plus, Champ screamed like a girl when that loud, cracking thunder came before the water started falling on us."

"Hey! It's not my fault that I scream like that!" Champ declared, defending himself, like he was offended or something.

I just ignored him, opening my mouth to say something when Stine's voice went through the phone, having me close it shut.

"Do you boys need any help?" he replied after Champ's response that he gave me.

For a second, I thought about it and responded to his offer. "Yeah...we could use your help... We're over at the gates when we escaped from the ghouls."

"I'll be there." The phone then went off, indicating me that he had hung up.

I leaned against the gates, my head down, looking at the dirt ground that is now turning into mud. "I thought that was Hannah calling for me," I relieved, getting my composure back.

"You really jumped when your phone rang," Champ tossed in.

"You did it, too," I claimed. "Anyway, I'm not the type of guy who's afraid of everything, like you are," I remarked. "Is there anything that you're not afraid of?" I questioned, wanting to know.

"Um, I'm not...sure..." he proceeded to say. "In case you didn't know, I was always a scared kid ever since I was little," he explained. "Plus," he sighed, "my parents are still thinking about kicking me out of their home… They told me that I need to 'grow up' and..." He let out a breath. "They told me to...break up with Taylor," he muttered.

I gave him a shocked look. "Your parents wanted you to break up with Taylor!? Didn't you tell them what you did for her?"

Champ shook his head. "...no..." he mumbled. "I didn't... They both think that I should date girls that are 'athletes' just like them. Sometimes when I hear them talking about me...I feel bad for myself for being such a coward. I told them that I can't help being frightened all the time, and you know what their response was?" He waited for me to answer, except I didn't. "They said: 'Champ, you need to stop being afraid of silly things'," he gave out his parents' words. He narrowed his brows. "It's like...they don't want me anymore."

After he told me all of this, I felt bad for him. He was the first person to greet me at the high school while the others teased me for being the new student. Yeah, I was annoyed by him, I had to admit that, but we then became good friends. He was actually my first friend because the other kids would make fun of me for what I was wearing. Once in science class, some dude thought it was funny to pull a prank on me and yellow goo splattered on my face and on my shirt, staining it.

That was fun to take off… At least it didn't stain my face like I thought it would.

"Sounds like your parents are complete imbeciles. So what if your not like them? It's like they think that you have to be good at everything."

"I already brought that up a couple of times..." He swept his hand over his head. "I'm just lucky that they don't...hit me just like Hazel went through when she used to live with god family."

"Yep." We then heard footsteps coming in our direction. I lifted my phone, the light catching someone walking down the path towards us.

"Put that light down!" the person yelled out. It was Stine, covering his eyes, shielding himself from the bright light with one hand, the umbrella in the other one. "You don't need to blind me, Zach."

I lowered my phone to my side. "Sorry about that."

Stine let out a experrated breath, putting his hand down with the phone in it, too. "It's alright. Now you need help, right?"

"Yeah," I said. I pointed outside the gates. "Slappy could over by those woods," he stated.

"Okay, I'll hold it open. You two slip through first, then I'll go through the gates once you get to the otherside," Stine directed to us. Putting his phone in his other hand that held the umbrella, he used the other one to open up the gates as much as he could.

Me and Champ slipped through with ease, seeing how easy it was for us to get through from between them. When Stine went to get through, he just ended up failing.

"Not again," he grunted in frustration, noticing that he got stuck again. He began pulling himself to the otherside. I went to help him, but he raised his hand, stopping me. "I got this," he told me.

Then, with a final pull, he manage to get free from them, landing on his stomach.

Getting back on his feet, he brushed the mud off his formal shirt. "Let's get going." He began walking with me right next to him when he stopped, glancing behind him. His eyes narrowed. "Champ, let's go." I turned to gaze at Champ who is kept his distance, standing near the gate, following Stine's face direction. "Let's go," he repeated, putting it in harshly, hoping that it'll work.

It didn't. Champ shook his head. "I don't want to..." he barely said. Stine stomped over to him, grabbing him by the ear. "Ow!" However, Stine just ignored him, forcing him to walk with us. "Ow! Stine, stop it!" he exclaimed. "Let go of my ear!"

He didn't let go of his ear. "I know what you're going to do," he spoke in a seething voice. "You're just gonna run off like you tried to do when all of were in Horrorland."

"Stine, stop it! I just don't want to go to the scary forest."

"It's just a forest, okay? It's the same one that you see in the daylight hours." Stine released him. Champ rubbed his ear, taking the pain off of it. "If you start to run off again..."

"Don't worry, I won't," Champ promised. "I don't want my ear to be all red and sore."

"Come on," I rushed, looking at the dark woods. "We better find that dummy before he does something he'll never regret," I muttered under my breath. We began walking. The ground was wet and muddy, almost making me slip and fall.

No need to be clumsy, Zach...

As we were about to enter the woods, Stine's phone went off. He checked it before answering the third ring. "Hannah?" Me and Champ stopped, going back over to him.

"Dad, I found him," Hannah reported from the phone. "He's was in the candy stall. Please come get us."

"Okay, stay there, we're coming." Once he told her what to do, he hung up, turning his face to us. "Let's go, boys." He turned around, heading back to the gates. "I hope I don't get stuck between those gates the third time around."

Oh, it's gonna happen.

Reaching to the gates again, Stine held one open. Again, me and Champ just slipped through them with no problem.

Stine went to step through.

Of course, just like that, he couldn't get through all the way. "Ugh! Who uses a chain to close these gates up?" he groaned, tugging himself with no attempt. I couldn't help but to put on a sly smile.

"Stuck again?" I crossed my arms over my chest.

"No, no, I got this." Yeah, right. Watching him tugging to get through, I tapped my foot on the soiled dirt impatiently. "Whoa!" Stine finally got through, falling onto the ground again. "I'm okay," he quickly assured us, standing back up.

"Boy, Stine, you're shirt's all muddy," Champ announced.

Stine looked at him, angrily. "Thanks... I didn't know that, Champion," he said sarcastically, saying his full name. "To my car," he then led on.

Once we got to his car, me and Champ got in the backseat as usual. Stine got in the driver's seat, starting the car up, driving back to the amusement park.

Hannah

I watched as my dad drove off to school with me staring at the abandoned amusement park, reminding me of the event where Zach had to finish dad's latest book.

Wanting to see if the lights come on like last time when I showed my boyfriend this place, I went over to the tree that has large light switch. I grabbed it, pulling it down.

Nothing. Seems like the lights don't work anymore.

Taking my phone out, I put it on flashlight mode, making my way through the old park full of old rides and everything else when I noticed something.

FLASH... KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

I leapt, letting out a short yelp, and dashed away from what I saw on the ground, almost tripping over my own feet when lightning and that loud, imitating thunder went off from the sky.

I regain myself status. "It's just going to storm, that's all… it was just thunder... thunder that scared me half to death." I took a deep breath, forcing it out to get my heart back to it's normal pace. "Okay, Hannah, go see what that stuff is," I whispered to myself in prep talk.

Going back to the stuff on the ground, I shined my light on it. The stuff that I saw on the ground is all green droplets; glowing to be exact.

"What is this stuff...?"

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

I jumped when hearing another angry thunder. "Get ahold of yourself, Hannah," I berated, getting annoyed that I'm getting frightened by the damn storm.

FLASH...

A cold wind whipped through my hair when lightning came from the evil clouds, making me shiver.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

It then started to rain. First it began lightly, then all of a sudden, I was getting drenched like I was underneath a waterfall. So I took my hood, pulling it over my head to keep my hair from getting wet, studying the green liquid. Somehow it didn't wash away like I thought it would.

I spotted another one, just an inch away from the first one. I stood up. Maybe this stuff would lead me to the dummy and I should follow it.

And that's what I did. I followed the trail of the green, glowing stuff when I spotted a stall, a candy stall, to be exact. The green stuff was ended by it, right in front of a rickety door that looks like it was about to come off from the old, rusted hinges that kept the door on the frame.

I put my hand on it and stopped when I heard... sniffling? Hmm... maybe he's in here-

RUSTLE! RUSTLE!

I stepped back, my gaze going over to a bush where I heard a noise.

RUSTLE!

The bush shook, the leaves getting shaken off with more rain falling on the plant. That's when I heard chittering sounds, and when I placed my hand on it, a furry animal scurried away, almost making me drop my phone on the ground that is now muddy due to the heavy rain.

It stopped and I saw it was a racoon, staring back at with it eyes that is surrounded by its mask, making the furry critter look like a bandit, holding something between its mouth.

I squinted, not wanting to get close to the wild animal, seeing that he has a piece of scrap in his lips. I didn't walk up to him, even though racoons are nocturnal, meaning that they only come out during the nighttime.

Except for those that have rabies...

"Shoo," I coasted, wanting it to go off in the opposite direction rather to come to me.

As if it was listening to me, the racoon turned around, running off in the other way just like I wanted it to do.

After that, I went back to the stall, placing my hand on the door.

Creak...

I stopped when the door made that noise. I wanted to peek through a window, but the problem is that there's no window.

Being as quiet as I could, I opened the door inch by inch, having just make crick sound. I paused before opening the door all the way.

I saw him.

Slappy...