Twinkitty: Are you okay? I thought I heard some noise up there.
Twinkitty: Bun??? U good???
--
Bunny is dead.
Besho doesn't know how long it's been yet, but it has felt like an eternity.
He hasn't tried to save them or to stop them from bleeding.
He hasn't done anything.
He has simply watched the blood drain from their head, waiting for a thought to enter his head.
The first thing that does eventually enter his head is dread.
Like a thick smoke, it descends upon him. It engulfs him, forcing itself down into his mind.
He jerks, suddenly, and lets out a cry.
"Fuck!" He cries, "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"
He places his hands on his knees, choking. The smoke curdles in his lungs, wrapping around his innards as it chokes him.
He gasps, placing a hand on his throat, fingers getting slick with the blood that lines it, "I didn't mean to," He chokes, staring at Bunny's body.
"You made me," He continues, "If you had just calmed down—"
Besho pokes at his bleeding throat; where Bunny had bitten him, "L-Look at what you did to me! I had to do it. You have to understand. I had to do it."
Bunny's body is silent.
He lets out another pained noise. His remaining eye is throbbing, the other one has gone numb. All that's left of it is a red, goopy socket.
"Fuck!" He says, again, "What the fuck?"
He lets out a scream, running his hands through his hair, "Shit. Shit. Fucking hell!"
He starts to pace, swearing, grunting with pain.
He sits on Bunny's bed. He looks down at their unmoving body, then looks away. He looks at the mountain of stuffed toys on the bed. They all look back at him.
'What did you do?'
'Why did you do that?'
'You killed them!'
'You hurt them!'
'We're gonna kill you!'
'Yeah! See how you like it!'
'Kill you! We're gonna kill you!'
He looks away. They shut up, but he still feels their eyes on him.
He sniffles, now staring at Bunny's bedding - it's Hello Kitty themed. A chokey sob rises in his throat, then another, and soon, he begins to cry.
"Oh, Bunny..." He chokes, "What had I done? What did I do?"
Bunny does not reply.
"I didn't mean to!" He wails, "I loved you! I didn't mean to hurt you!"
He sobs into their bed. He sobs for so long, and still, Bunny does not move. Bunny does not reply. Bunny is dead.
He begins to quieten. His sobs slow. It's dawning on him.
What is he supposed to do now?
"Oh, fuck…"
How is he supposed to get out of this?
He gets up, swearing again. His nails dig into his palm.
"What do I do?" He asks, "What the fuck do I do?"
He repeats it, as if willing a solution into existence.
Should he just leave? Go on the run? No, that wouldn't work. Though, maybe...
It hits him.
He knows someone who could help. Who has always helped him.
He scrambles around, finding his phone. He calls them.
"Hello?" They say. They sound tired, or drunk. Perhaps they are both.
"Hajime!" Besho cries, "Oh, Hajime—"
"Yuki? Hi. How'd it go with uh…Oh, God, what was its name? Bambi? Yeah. Bambi. That was it. Or was it…Oh, it was something stupid. Anyway. How'd it go?"
"…Oh, Hajime, I—"
"Yuki? Are you crying? Don't tell me you're crying!"
"Oh, Hajime, I fucked up. I've really fucked up."
"Urgh," He can hear his eye roll over the phone, "What did that whore do this time? Let me guess, they're already claiming you assaulted them or whatever—"
"No, Hajime, they're…I-I..." Besho lowers his voice, "Hajime, they're dead."
"…Huh?"
"They're dead. I-I think I killed them."
"You what?"
"They're dead, Hajime! I killed them!"
"Oh…Christ. Okay...How?"
"I hit them on the head, and now they're…"
"What? And now they're what?"
"They're on the floor. They're dead, Hajime. I killed them."
"What does it look like?"
"Oh, there's blood everywhere, Hajime. And-And their face…Oh, it fucking collapsed in on itself!"
"Fucking hell—How hard did you hit her?"
Besho stares at Bunny. Their face doesn't look as bad as he remembers, but it's so covered in blood, he can't make out the damage. He's certain he's something slithering around in one of the open wounds, but he probably imagined it.
"It didn't collapse collapse, but...there's blood everywhere."
"What the fuck happened? Did you attack them?"
"No! I just told them how I felt and they—they just wouldn't calm down. They freaked out, I tried to stop them, but—"
"They attacked you?"
"…Yes. They did. They—My eye. They kicked it and now—I can't explain it, but my eye—"
"Jesus. Are you okay?"
"I don't know, but I need to know—I don't know what to do now."
"Ok. Ok. Got it. Where are you right now?"
"Their bedroom."
"Who else is there?"
"One of their friends. The small one."
"What about their dad? You know, the one that could actually do some fucking damage?"
"He's out, but he'll be back soon," He says, still staring at Bunny's bloodied head, "I don't know what to do."
He swears he sees something move again. It slithers across the split chunk of their face. He blinks, and it's gone.
"Just leave them and dash," Hajime says, as if it were oh so simple.
"Don't be such an idiot, Hajime! It's obvious that I fucking did it, isn't it? They also bit me! They bit a chunk of my fucking throat out. My fucking DNA's probably all over the place."
"Ewww. Just…Okay, take them somewhere and dump them."
"There'll still be evidence!"
"So what? The police aren't gonna go after you. The government's wanted that whore out of the way for ages, you know that. They'll probably give you a fucking medal."
"You don't know that. Hajime, please. Please just—"
"Believe me, Yuki, dump them somewhere and let a ghoul have at it. Trust me, no one's gonna care about another dead hussy, especially when that hussy tried to piss on the government before."
"But—"
"Look, just take the worst bits you can find and shove it all in your car, then just dump them somewhere. The only people who'll care are their dad, that miserable bitch and their friend, but it's not like anyone'll listen. Not with their records."
"Okay. Okay…Maybe you're right. Maybe…Maybe that's sensible. It might work," Besho nods, thinking to himself.
"But...That little shit's downstairs. I think he'll notice me taking them to my car."
"Jesus, do I have to do everything for you? Just knock him out."
"How?"
"I don't know, just smack him over the head. You're good at that, right?" Hajime laughs.
"That's not funny."
"Oh, come on. You know."
"Hajime, this is serious."
"Yeah, yeah. Look, just knock him out. It'll be easy, he's like, pocket-sized."
"...Okay. Okay…I'll call you back when I'm done."
"I'll be waiting. Don't fuck it up."
"I won't. Bye, Hajime."
Besho sighs, sniffling again. He looks at Bunny, the smoke filling his lungs once more.
He sees something slither across their head again, but he blinks and it's gone.
It's probably just his eye. It's nothing. He's just—
Besho gasps, jumping at a new sound; knocking at the door.
"Bunny? Is everything okay?"
It's Dory. He sounds worried.
"Bunny? Dude, you okay? I heard a weird noise…You in there?"
Besho shudders, looking around for something to hit Dory with.
"Mr Besho? Are you in there? Is Bunny okay?"
Besho hesitates, "Doryo? Oh, um, it's okay."
"Yeah? Ok…Where's Bunny? Can I speak to them?"
Besho picks up the unicorn ornament.
"Um…They're a bit busy at the moment."
"With what?"
"Nothing, they're just a little…upset."
"Ok. Let me talk to them."
"Oh, no. They're fine, they just want to sit quiet for a moment. We'll be down in a minute."
"…Bunny? Are you okay?"
"They're fine. It's fine. There's no need to worry."
"Bunny?"
"It's fine, Doryo. Really. They don't want to talk."
Dory hesitates, "Well…Okay…Um…I'm just gonna take the dogs outside…We really need to go now though, so…I'll be back in a minute."
"Okay."
Besho waits, ornament in hand. He waits until Dory is down the stairs, before creeping down after him.
Besho stumbles; a result of dizziness and not being used to having one working eye. He's sweating, the smoke still curdling in his stomach.
He can see Dory through one of the kitchen windows. Dory is on his phone, tapping away at a frantic speed.
He doesn't see Besho. He hears him, but by that time it's too late.
Dory goes down easily. Easier than Besho expected; he's still alive, thankfully.
The two dogs are barking, they follow Besho to the door. They snarl and growl at him.
When he brings Dory back inside, the dogs stand by the door, foaming at the mouth as they glare and snarl at him.
Besho leaves Dory in the living room. Before returning to get Bunny, he goes to the bathroom. He finds a first-aid kit and, using cotton and some tape, fashions an eyepatch and covers up his neck wound.
I should change, He thinks to himself, Oh, I haven't got time. I'll do it later.
He returns to Bunny's bedroom. He takes a deep breath, looking around the room; it's brighter than before, he doesn't know why.
Slowly, he approaches Bunny's body.
Something slithers over them again. He blinks, and it's gone.
It's probably just his eye. It's nothing.
He looks down at Bunny. He needs to find something; the most incriminating piece of evidence.
A sickness builds within him as he realises; Bunny's shoes are gone.
He gasps, glancing around.
"No, no, no," He says, "No, no, no."
He gets on the floor, clambering all over the bloodied carpet, trying to find Bunny's shoe.
He realises now he should clean the carpet, but he doesn't have time. He just needs those shoes.
As he searches, something moves above him; some kind of light on the ceiling.
He looks up, but finds nothing.
"Don't be so stupid," He says, "You're just seeing things. It's just your eye. Calm it down," He sighs.
He searches some more, finally catching sight of the shoes; they're on the windowsill, getting crusty with bits of eye and blood.
He breathes a sigh of relief, approaching it.
When he touches it, he feels something warm on his neck. It's like something is breathing on him.
He turns around; nothing.
You're being stupid, He thinks, Just get out of here.
He clutches the shoe, going to Bunny's wardrobe and finding a blanket to wrap them in.
The one he finds is a pink Care-Bear blanket. The sight of it makes the smoke within rise, stinging his throat.
He feels it again. The breath.
He snaps around; still nothing.
It's nothing. Stop panicking. It's nothing. You're just—
He freezes.
There's something on the bed.
It's staring at him, smiling.
"How did you get there?" He asks, locking eyes with it.
It does not move.
It does not speak.
It only smiles.
It's just a toy, Besho thinks, Stop it. Stop being so on edge.
He places the blanket down.
It's still staring at him.
They lock eyes again, engaging in another staring contest.
But nothing happens.
Besho sighs of relief, the shoe in hand. Just paranoid, he thinks, I knew it. Just a toy.
He sighs in relief.
Just a toy.
He looks down at Bunny's body once more.
"Alright then, Bunny," He says, "It's time to go."
He puts the blanket down on the bloodied rug, and grabs Bunny from under their stomach, putting them down on the blanket.
Still so warm, He thinks.
He holds back a sob, the smoke getting tangled in his breath.
Just get it over with. Cry later.
He picks up the shoes and the unicorn ornament, and puts them down in the blanket with Bunny.
He looks around, trying to find anything else to remove. There's probably more, but he doesn't have time. This'll have to do. It's time to go.
It's okay. You did it. Just get to the car and leave. That's all. Then this'll be over.
He needs to wrap Bunny up next. He begins to lift the blanket, but stops.
He freezes.
His blood runs cold.
It's just a toy, he tries to tell himself, It's just a toy.
He trembles, staring at it. It's smiling at him.
It's fine. It's just a stupid toy.
He approaches it, "This is so stup—"
He stops.
He sees something reflecting in its eyes; a faded light that seems like a floating blob of unknown colour. It should be just behind him.
A chill runs down his spine as he realises; it's not him it's smiling at.
--
Twinkitty: How far away r u? Get back here asap.
Pasorokin: 5 mins. Why? What's happened?
Twinkitty: idk besho acting weird…bunny not talking??? Somethings wrong pasha pls
Pasorokin: ok stay there omw
Twinkitty: pls hurry
--
There's something wrong with the Moon.
Lyra doesn't know what. Something about the way it's rising; it's just not quite right.
It's colour. It's texture. The way it stares at her.
It's just off.
There's something wrong with the Sun.
Lyra doesn't know what. Something about the way it's setting; it's just not quite right.
It's colour. The way it burns. The way it stares at her.
It's just off.
Lyra wonders if everyone else feels it; she's pretty sure they do.
Miss Imakita tugs on her hair, glancing at the Moon with shifting eyes.
Pasha looks as nervous as he usually does, there's a pink twinge to his tawny skin. He stares at his phone, then at the Moon, then at his phone, then back at the Moon, then at the rest of the group, as if checking something.
Tsukiyama also has a strange edge; their nose twitching. He glances around with narrowed eyes. There's almost something foxlike about his motion; as if searching for both danger and prey at once.
It's not just me then, Lyra thinks, That's good.
Lyra wonders if she should ask the others about it, but that's stupid.
Lyra imagines that if she were to ask, 'What's wrong with the Sun? What's wrong with the Moon? Why do the stars seem so angry?', everyone would laugh at her and call her an idiot.
Lyra just walks in silence, waiting for someone to mention the fact that There's Something Wrong With The Sky.
Pasha is the first to break the silence, after looking at a message on his phone, "I'm gonna go back home," He says, looking slightly sickly.
"Pourquoi? " Tsukiyama asks, "Is something wrong? What's wrong? Has something happened? Is Little Bun—"
"I don't know. Dory says something's up, I'm just gonna go and check on things," He's starting to tremble.
"I'll go with you," Tsukiyama says.
"We'll go," Miss Imakita adds, "It's only five minutes. Come on, Lyra."
Lyra walks to Miss Imakita's side, trailing behind as usual. Everyone walks faster than usual; Pasha and Tsukiyama are practically running.
"What do you think happened?" Tsukiyama asks.
"I don't know," Pasha says, though he has an idea.
Would Mr Besho do that? He never seemed like the type. But I've said that about most of them. God, how can I be so stupid?
When they arrive at the house, it is immediately apparent that something is wrong.
It's quiet, save for one, terrible noise.
The noise is familiar in a sickening way. Pasha has heard it only once before, but he remembers the experience vividly.
It was a cold October night. He was in the middle of Pumlumon Fawr, desperately calling out for his child with no result.
That noise had been different then; sharper. It had slid into the bitter Welsh winds, like shards of an icy star. It had gnawed at his throat, and ate at his heart, its tiny blades threatening to pierce his skin.
That noise.
How it had filled him with fear. How, the deeper he went into the mountains, he began to believe that Y Ddraig Goch itself was beckoning him further into the winds.
Perhaps it was.
But Y Ddraig Goch does not live in Tokyo.
There is only that noise, as it is now; soft and shrill, like some kind of young, pained creature.
The noise now is a soft song; a banshee without its key feature.
As Pasha draws closer to the house, he can only remember what he'd found the first time; on that cold October night.
His child was there, but it was not his child. Instead, he found only a vessel.
It lay on the grass, empty, soaking the grass with its burning blood, and above it; that thing.
That thing that made such awful noises.
Familial, yet different noises.
Now he knows what that noise means. To say it makes him sick would be an understatement.
There is nothing to describe how the noise makes him feel.
Dread is perhaps the closest describable feeling, but even that is an understatement.
But there is nothing else Pasha can do.
All he can do is go into the house, and pray that his child is OK.
This chapter is short, hence why it didn't take like a month to update. The next few chapters are pretty short, so I have lots of them written up. The posting schedule will be as usual however. The only exception to this is the next chapter, which is super short, and I don't want u guys to wait a long time for that so it'll either be up next week or a week before the chapter after that.
I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter and have a nice day! Pls comment, like/equivalent of like, bookmark, etc - it rly helps me out!
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