*** Later that day, Nny got home with a cherry doom brainfreezy. He
slumped down on his old sofa in the dark. He felt strange. For years, being
a homicidal maniac had been eating up all his free time. Now he felt
almost like a regular person, home from a long day of hardships, slumped on
the couch to watch Tv and later go to bed to dream regular dreams. He felt
like doing something he'd never considered. He got up and headed for his
basement, down the besmirched steps, down into the fusty labyrinth of rooms
that traversed through the lower quarters of Nny's abode. He headed down,
lower and lower into the lowest section of the dwelling.
He opened a door and stepped into a shadowy room. He switched on the light. Hundreds upon hundreds of prisoners hung from the dark, stained ramparts. Some of them lifted their heads dazedly when the light flooded in. Others had starved to death.
"You!" said one of them wrathfully, staring at Nny with abhorrence. (sorry so many big words. I've been using my computer's synonym dictionary.)
"Yes, me," Nny said calmly.
"You're the one who..hung us up here...aren't you?" asked one of them feebly.
"Yes, that is me. Now, I see that you look most...uncomfortable. I'll be willing to let you all go, if you don't try any funny business on your way out," Nny said in a businesslike manner.
"You would never," said one of them, voice full of loathing.
Nny responded by pushing the button that unlocked all the prisoners' shackles and left the room. He went up into a bedroom, and sat down on the bed he'd forgotten he owned. A minute later all the walking noises were gone. Johnny left the room, and went out into his living room. He's just freed the prisoners of his entire homicidal period. There was nothing left to remind him of his prior life now but the exploded, splintered wall downstairs where the 'thing' (fun fact: it's not a moose) that had burst through his wall and come out of, and now it was gone to somewhere Johnny had no idea about, along with the doughboys, and he'd even gotten rid of that creepy little burger boy. Now, he was a slave to nothing. Not to the wall. Not to the doughboys. Not that burger boy. Not anything. He was his own now. There was also an occasional dried blood spot on the wall or floor, and the huge splotch of dried blood from his own fatal bullet wound (see # 4 &5 of JTHM) that had come seeping out of his head, still there to remind him. The scar was gone from the wound, strangely enough. He wondered how it had healed so completely.
Nny sat quietly, a mixture of emotions surging inside of him. He wanted desperately to talk to someone, someone who would listen to him. He missed the voices even, now he was so alone. He hugged his knees.
"Nail Bunny?" he whispered, willing, hoping, praying for an answer from the deceased rabbit. He missed the voice of Nail Bunny. The only one who'd talk to him, and listen, though he knew Nail Bunny's voice was really his own subconscious voice speaking. And suddenly, he heard it, a tiny whisper.
"Yes," the whisper came, quiet and almost inaudible.
Nny leaped up off the bed.
"Nail Bunny!?" he gasped.
"You're better now, aren't you Nny?" came Nail Bunny's voice, soft and almost muted.
"Yes! I think s, Bunny," Nny said fervently, hoping the voice would continue.
"You freed the prisoners, you stopped the killing, you got rid of those that provoked you, and now you're slowly regaining sanity. Things are becoming as they should be. The face that I, who am really you, am speaking again is proof that you're getting better, Nny. Things will be OK again. Just like you always dreamed. Everything will be fine now," N.B. (Nail Bunny) said.
"Bunny, I still have things to work out. I almost killed Devi. You remember, I told you before. I feel awful about it," Nny said.
"You should," N.B. said.
"I know," Nny said, looking at the beaten floorboards.
"You feel guilty?"
"Yes. I almost killed her. I'm actually glad she beat me up. If I'd killed her, I'd feel even worse. She never did anything to me. I'm nuts,"
"You love her, don't you Nny?" N.B. asked.
Nny looked at the floor.
Silence.
"No. There's no way, Nail Bunny. At least I don't think so," Johnny said.
"Then why do you care so much, when you've killed so many people before without a second thought?" Nail Bunny asked, floating up in front of Nny' s face.
Nny looked again at the floor. "I don't know. I just don't know. But I can't.......love anyone like this. I'm a shattered human. You know that," Nny said.
"Not quite so. You're becoming actually sane again, Nny. Everyone has emotions," N.B. said.
"But, I can't ," Nny said. He kicked at something on the floor that wasn't in reality there.
"You can, you know it Nny. Because I think so, and I'm actually just you. You're having this discussion with yourself in veracity, you know. So you must somewhere deep inside know it," N.B. said.
"Oh, stop your prying Nail Bunny!" Nny said, covering his head with his hands in aggravation.
"I'm not prying. I'm actually your own voice. You're prying through your own emotions because love scares you. And you know it," Bunny said.
"No! No love does not scare me! I don't know it, so I can't be afraid of it! Stop!" Nny said.
"It scares you. I know it scares you. You hide from her when you see her, and back when she tried to kiss you, you ran away. Because you were afraid," Nail Bunny said.
"No! No! No! no! no! NO! Stop it! Just stop it! Stop it now! STOP! " Nny shouted. He covered his head with his hands and clutched his hair, shaking his head rapidly back and forth.
"Fine. I will stop, Nny. But you know I'm right," Nail Bunny said.
Late into the night Nny sat motionless for hours on end, mulling over what Nail Bunny had said. He was silent. The skittering cockroaches running by his immobile form didn't even notice he was there.
Nny pondered and pondered, and soon as the darkness swallowed up everything for real, he realized a very startling truth.
"Nail Bunny was right. Everything he said about me. He's right. I never realized it before, but he was right. But how can it be? I'm too holed up inside my mind right now to feel emotions. Let alone this............... Love, which is certainly new to me. And this strange sense of longing and culpability. It's all very strange," Nny muttered to himself.
It was all new to Nny what he was feeling. He'd never felt any of the things he was feeling right now before.
"Maybe I am getting better. Maybe I'm becoming.........human again. That, remains to be seen," Nny whispered to himself in the dark. And then he surprised himself. He gave a little smile.
Dee dee dee dee dee. La la. Um, I'll do more soon. I guess.
He opened a door and stepped into a shadowy room. He switched on the light. Hundreds upon hundreds of prisoners hung from the dark, stained ramparts. Some of them lifted their heads dazedly when the light flooded in. Others had starved to death.
"You!" said one of them wrathfully, staring at Nny with abhorrence. (sorry so many big words. I've been using my computer's synonym dictionary.)
"Yes, me," Nny said calmly.
"You're the one who..hung us up here...aren't you?" asked one of them feebly.
"Yes, that is me. Now, I see that you look most...uncomfortable. I'll be willing to let you all go, if you don't try any funny business on your way out," Nny said in a businesslike manner.
"You would never," said one of them, voice full of loathing.
Nny responded by pushing the button that unlocked all the prisoners' shackles and left the room. He went up into a bedroom, and sat down on the bed he'd forgotten he owned. A minute later all the walking noises were gone. Johnny left the room, and went out into his living room. He's just freed the prisoners of his entire homicidal period. There was nothing left to remind him of his prior life now but the exploded, splintered wall downstairs where the 'thing' (fun fact: it's not a moose) that had burst through his wall and come out of, and now it was gone to somewhere Johnny had no idea about, along with the doughboys, and he'd even gotten rid of that creepy little burger boy. Now, he was a slave to nothing. Not to the wall. Not to the doughboys. Not that burger boy. Not anything. He was his own now. There was also an occasional dried blood spot on the wall or floor, and the huge splotch of dried blood from his own fatal bullet wound (see # 4 &5 of JTHM) that had come seeping out of his head, still there to remind him. The scar was gone from the wound, strangely enough. He wondered how it had healed so completely.
Nny sat quietly, a mixture of emotions surging inside of him. He wanted desperately to talk to someone, someone who would listen to him. He missed the voices even, now he was so alone. He hugged his knees.
"Nail Bunny?" he whispered, willing, hoping, praying for an answer from the deceased rabbit. He missed the voice of Nail Bunny. The only one who'd talk to him, and listen, though he knew Nail Bunny's voice was really his own subconscious voice speaking. And suddenly, he heard it, a tiny whisper.
"Yes," the whisper came, quiet and almost inaudible.
Nny leaped up off the bed.
"Nail Bunny!?" he gasped.
"You're better now, aren't you Nny?" came Nail Bunny's voice, soft and almost muted.
"Yes! I think s, Bunny," Nny said fervently, hoping the voice would continue.
"You freed the prisoners, you stopped the killing, you got rid of those that provoked you, and now you're slowly regaining sanity. Things are becoming as they should be. The face that I, who am really you, am speaking again is proof that you're getting better, Nny. Things will be OK again. Just like you always dreamed. Everything will be fine now," N.B. (Nail Bunny) said.
"Bunny, I still have things to work out. I almost killed Devi. You remember, I told you before. I feel awful about it," Nny said.
"You should," N.B. said.
"I know," Nny said, looking at the beaten floorboards.
"You feel guilty?"
"Yes. I almost killed her. I'm actually glad she beat me up. If I'd killed her, I'd feel even worse. She never did anything to me. I'm nuts,"
"You love her, don't you Nny?" N.B. asked.
Nny looked at the floor.
Silence.
"No. There's no way, Nail Bunny. At least I don't think so," Johnny said.
"Then why do you care so much, when you've killed so many people before without a second thought?" Nail Bunny asked, floating up in front of Nny' s face.
Nny looked again at the floor. "I don't know. I just don't know. But I can't.......love anyone like this. I'm a shattered human. You know that," Nny said.
"Not quite so. You're becoming actually sane again, Nny. Everyone has emotions," N.B. said.
"But, I can't ," Nny said. He kicked at something on the floor that wasn't in reality there.
"You can, you know it Nny. Because I think so, and I'm actually just you. You're having this discussion with yourself in veracity, you know. So you must somewhere deep inside know it," N.B. said.
"Oh, stop your prying Nail Bunny!" Nny said, covering his head with his hands in aggravation.
"I'm not prying. I'm actually your own voice. You're prying through your own emotions because love scares you. And you know it," Bunny said.
"No! No love does not scare me! I don't know it, so I can't be afraid of it! Stop!" Nny said.
"It scares you. I know it scares you. You hide from her when you see her, and back when she tried to kiss you, you ran away. Because you were afraid," Nail Bunny said.
"No! No! No! no! no! NO! Stop it! Just stop it! Stop it now! STOP! " Nny shouted. He covered his head with his hands and clutched his hair, shaking his head rapidly back and forth.
"Fine. I will stop, Nny. But you know I'm right," Nail Bunny said.
Late into the night Nny sat motionless for hours on end, mulling over what Nail Bunny had said. He was silent. The skittering cockroaches running by his immobile form didn't even notice he was there.
Nny pondered and pondered, and soon as the darkness swallowed up everything for real, he realized a very startling truth.
"Nail Bunny was right. Everything he said about me. He's right. I never realized it before, but he was right. But how can it be? I'm too holed up inside my mind right now to feel emotions. Let alone this............... Love, which is certainly new to me. And this strange sense of longing and culpability. It's all very strange," Nny muttered to himself.
It was all new to Nny what he was feeling. He'd never felt any of the things he was feeling right now before.
"Maybe I am getting better. Maybe I'm becoming.........human again. That, remains to be seen," Nny whispered to himself in the dark. And then he surprised himself. He gave a little smile.
Dee dee dee dee dee. La la. Um, I'll do more soon. I guess.
