A/N: Darkinyron - Aw, that's one of the nicest reviews I've ever gotten! Thanks a lot!

Retribution

Antares smiled at Darry as she settled herself on the beanbags, drawing the blankets over herself. Darry kicked off his high-tops and slid under the blankets she had left for him on the bed. As he did, his foot hit something soft near the bottom of the bed. Curious, he reached down and pulled out…a teddy bear. A very soft, albeit somewhat coarse, brown teddy bear with a slightly squashed suede nose, a bearish smile sewn on his mouth, and in his eyes the same gentle sagacity that one sees in the eyes of a grandparent. His fur was worn away in a few patches, and he had obviously been well-loved for a long time. Smiling at the bear, Darry turned to Antares.

"Friend of yours?" he asked. Antares looked up and immediately flushed with embarrassment.

"Yeah," she mumbled, reaching out for the bear. Darry smiled at her and handed it to her. "I've had him since I was born. The first gift my grandma ever gave me, and the first toy I ever had. I always liked to hold him when I was sick or scared. He's been my only solace for almost a month." Darry nodded understandingly.

"What's his name?" he asked, lying on his back with his hands under his head.

"Benji," answered Antares. "His tag says 'Benjamin', but I've always only known him as Benji. I think my mom gave him that name." She sighed and smiled as she stroked the bear's ears fondly. "I know it's silly, a sixteen-year-old having a teddy bear, but I like stuffed animals. Besides, he's special; he's been in my family for a long time. I planned to give him to my children someday."

"Mine's named Growlie," said Darry, gazing up at the ceiling. Antares looked at him in surprise. Darry smiled at her. "My old teddy bear. His name's Growlie. I know, it's a pretty dumb name, but I got him when I was three. It seemed like a good name at the time, and then I just didn't really pay much attention to him anymore so his name didn't matter." Antares smiled at him.

"I really wanted him the first few days," she said. "Benji, I mean. I would've grabbed him from the tent if I could've. I found him lying on my bed one day. Since he smelled like Lysol, I guessed that Creeper had brought him from my house and sprayed him with the disinfectant since I have voiced my opinions about his personal hygiene…or lack thereof, as it were." Darry gave a short laugh. Antares smiled at him, then seemed surprised. She had smiled several times in the last hour or so. She hadn't smiled in almost a month. Smiling felt strange, but nice. Though the conditions of their strange friendship were almost unbearable, it was nice to have a friend under such conditions. Still smiling, Antares propped herself up on her elbow, facing Darry. He did the same facing her.

"So where are you from?" she asked. "I figure if we're going to be spending time together we may as well get to know each other, unless you'd rather not."

"I'm from northern Ohio (A/N: I'm not sure if this is accurate, so if someone knows otherwise could you please correct me?) near Lake Erie," said Darry. "You?"

"North Carolina," Antares replied. "Outer Banks. We live right on the beach practically."

"So what are you doing all the way up here then?" asked Darry.

"Visiting my brother," said Antares. "He goes to college up here; we were coming to go on a camping trip in the country. Bad idea."

"Hey, you couldn't've known what would happen," said Darry. "So you have an older brother. Any other siblings?"

"Huh. One's plenty. There's just him and me. What about you?"

"Slightly older sister, two years older. Trish. We were going home for break when we saw the Creeper dumping bodies down an old pipe at that church."

"Yeah, I was down there at the time. I wondered why he took off again in such a hurry."

"You were down there? I didn't see you when I fell in."

"You wouldn't've. Sometimes when he leaves me alone for an extended period of time, Creeper shuts me in my room so I can't try to run away. I heard you, though. Is that how you hurt your hand?"

"Oh, yeah. I hadn't even thought about that. Yeah, I cut it on the way down or something."

Antares nodded and gazed at his bandaged hand thoughtfully for a time. Her head snapped up instantly, reflexively, as they both heard a scraping sound, followed by a leaden thud! from outside the door.

"He's back," whispered Antares. Darry sniffed the air.

"Eugh. What's that smell?" he asked, wrinkling his nose. Antares sniffed briefly.

"Formaldehyde," she said. "He uses it to preserve the bodies; it prevents putrefaction. Rank stuff, I know, but you get used to it." She fell silent, listening, but the Creeper didn't come near the door. Slowly she relaxed as the dreadful wooden footsteps faded away. Darry looked at her in concern.

"You're shaking," he said softly. Antares looked at him, then down at her trembling hands. She shrugged and looked back at him.

"So are you," she pointed out. "I told you: that creature scares the shit outta me." She sighed and dropped her hands. "He's going to come for me tonight, I know it. He's just bringing in his trophies. Those who know of him think he takes all his victims' bodies into these places for display, but that's not true. He only takes certain bodies, depending on the person's looks and how they died. You know, if they fought him to the end or if they broke down screaming for their Mommy."

"Should I be flattered?" asked Darry. Antares shrugged again.

"If it makes you feel better," she answered. "He'll be in and out all day, I'm sure. He prefers to feed from me at night, for some reason."

"Haven't you fought him?" asked Darry.

"Of course I have. Unfortunately, he has a very low opinion of defiance. He can't kill me, and he won't let me die, but there are worse things than death." She shuddered. "You've got one chance in five; they're the odds you must meet if you want to survive. This is the Devil's Playground." Darry didn't know what to say, so he remained silent. Presently he ventured to speak:

"I don't want to just let him hurt you."

Antares gave a hollow laugh. "I thank you for the sentiment, but it won't do either of us any good. I don't have a choice, and you're not strong enough to stop him from doing exactly what he wants." She sighed and looked at him with infinite sadness in her emerald eyes. "I don't want you to get hurt either. If he comes in tonight, just turn over and go back to sleep. Please just let him do what he will and get it over with. It's not so bad; really, it's not. Don't get in his way. Please, Darry." Darry's heart was touched by her soft, sad request. He didn't want to do as she asked, but how could he refuse? He sighed.

"All right," he said. "But I don't like this."

"Nor do I," Antares replied. She yawned, stifling it with her hand. "I'm exhausted; I was waiting up all night, terrified I'd miss my chance to save you. And I can see the fatigue in your eyes. We should both just get some sleep."

'Personally, I'd be shocked if I ever sleep again,' thought Darry, but he said nothing, only nodded. Antares folded her arms under her head, snuggling down into the beanbags comfortably. Darry noticed that she had left him her only pillow and felt a twinge of guilt. Why was she doing all this for him? Confused and inexplicably sad, Darry lay down on his side facing Antares, and fell asleep thus.

A strident metallic shriek made Darry stir in his otherwise undisturbed sleep briefly. For an instant he thought he saw the Creeper standing in the doorway, backlit by the glow of candles from his "workshop", holding something that Darry didn't want to acknowledge as a whip. The Creeper neither moved nor spoke, just stood tapping the whip against his leg as he gazed at Antares thoughtfully. Darry was so tired he was convinced he was just having a strange dream, and so did nothing when the Creeper came into the room and shook Antares awake and none too gently either. She stared up at him in undisguised terror, biting back sobs as the Creeper tried to drag her to her feet. She shook her head desperately, pleading with him to spare her just one night, just this once. The Creeper threw her down roughly and pointed at Darry, snarling something to her that made her hang her head and nod slowly, rising to her feet and letting the Creeper half drag her out of the room. He heard her moaning. Such a small, despairing sound. Frowning, he rose up and went to the ajar door and peered through. What he saw he knew he would never forget. Antares was in the Creeper's arms, her head bent back as he sucked some silvery smoky stuff out of her.

'What the…is that her spirit?' thought Darry, attempting to wake himself further. Antares's knees gave out slowly and she sank to the floor, but still the Creeper fed from her. Finally he stopped, and Antares exhaled heavily as though breathing had been difficult for her. Slowly she raised her head and looked at the Creeper.

"Don't think you get off so easily," he growled. Antares's eyes widened and she looked around. Darry did the same, though he didn't know what he was looking for. He heard a whispered "No," and looked up at Antares. She was staring in terror at the whip in the Creeper's hand.

'Oh God,' thought Darry. 'No, no, he wouldn't…would he?' He watched in horror as the Creeper threw Antares face-down over the table, holding her down by pressing his hand into the back of her neck.

"I'll teach you to steal my prey!" snarled the Creeper, raising the whip. But the blow never fell.

"Stop it!" shouted Darry, springing out of the shadows into the light. "Leave her alone!" The Creeper looked up at him in mild surprise. He laughed.

"How cute," he sneered. "It seems your hero has come to save you, Antares." He pulled her up roughly, holding her by the back of the neck like an animal. "Do you feel safe now? Do you feel protected?" He laughed again. Darry ground his teeth in frustration.

"Darry, please don't," choked Antares. "Just go back to bed, please!"

"That's right, Darry, go back to bed," mimicked the Creeper in a wickedly mincing tone. "I'll take good care of pretty little Antares, don't you worry."

"I'm not leaving her," said Darry steadfastly, trying to keep the fear from his voice. The Creeper only laughed again. "You think that's funny, you demented son of a bitch? Well go ahead, laugh 'til your sides pop. She saved my life; I'm not going to thank her by just ignoring her when she needs me." Still looking amused, the Creeper looked briefly at Antares, still struggling in his grip. Then, grinning evilly at Darry, he tossed Antares away as haphazardly as though she were a rag doll and advanced on Darry, seizing the front of his shirt and dragging him back to the table. Darry looked over where Antares had landed. She wasn't moving, but she was breathing steadily. She must've hit her head and been knocked out. He gave a startled cry as the Creeper grabbed a handful of his hair and twisted his head back to look him in the eyes…eyes that would've been Darry's own if Antares hadn't been there.

"You're here to suffer to protect her?" hissed the Creeper scathingly. With a single swipe of his inhuman claws he shredded Darry's green-grey shirt and pinned him down on the table in the same manner he had pinned Antares. "Then protect her from this!" The first blow of the whip fell across Darry's bare back on the word "this". Darry screamed in pain, thrashing desperately as he tried to get free. The Creeper's grasp was iron, though; Darry may as well have been struggling in the grip of a stone golem out of a faerie tale for all the good it did him. Again and again the whip hissed through the air and landed, burning, across his back. Again and again Darry screamed in ever-increasing agony. He lay quivering, tears streaming down his face as steadily as the blood running down his back, soaking into his jeans, dripping onto the floor. He heard the swish of the whip being raised again and squeezed his eyes shut, clenching his hands into fists, waiting for the pain. But it didn't come again.

"What in the hell!" came the Creeper's surprised and angered voice. Darry opened his eyes slowly, twisting his head around as much as he could to see what was going on. Antares stood next to him, gripping the Creeper's wrist, her face expressionless, her eyes tired and filled with smoldering hatred.

"Leave him alone," she said. Quite unexpectedly, she shoved the Creeper back and since he wasn't prepared for it he stumbled back, releasing Darry. "And leave me alone," she added quietly as she reached for Darry's hand. She turned to him and drew his arm slowly across her shoulders, helping him to stand. Darry cried out in pain, but didn't fight her. She studied him for a moment, then turned her gaze back to the Creeper, who had since recovered and stood scowling at them both.

"I never should have let that boy live," he hissed. "He's deluded you, give you mad thoughts that this petty defiance will serve you any good. The only reason you're still alive, you ungrateful child, is because you have something I want that I can get from no other. That brat you're holding has no such quality. I have no need of him, no reason to keep him around. He's worthless."

"Yeah. And you're ugly," Antares replied bluntly. She looked away from him deliberately and started helping Darry back to her room.

"Don't you turn your back on me!" roared the Creeper, lunging at them. Antares seized a knife and slashed wildly at the Creeper, gashing him across the abdomen. He gasped and stumbled back. Antares seized her chance and hurried Darry back into her room, kicking the door shut behind her.