Dark Nights, Black Days

by diddly day

Note to the reader: It's been a while. But I'm back. This chapter is probably the scariest so far. I don't know if you guys will think it scary. What is frightening to me might be laughable to you. But you'll have to read all of it to get what's going on. I hope you guys like it. It took me forever to write. I really talk about the town of Silent Hill, as well as many of its landmarks and locations. So, just bare with me.

Edit: Also, I know other authors are having this problem, in which when they post their stories, some sentances come out "Likethis." It's very annoying, I don't know why it does that, but I'm trying to fix it.

Remember, italics are memories and dreams.

Thank you.

Chapter Four:

"You do know why you're here, don't you?"

Eileen didn't move. In her opinion, it was an exceedingly stupid question. However, it was her first session, and she knew that she would have to relive those messy memories that she tried so hard not to think about. It was her way of recovering. And to do that, Eileen would have to start somewhere. . .Even if it meant answering a completely obvious inquiry.

Finally, she nodded slightly.

"I'm here to. . .deal," she responded softly. Monroe laughed.

"Yes, in a manner of speaking. I guess you could say that."

He was sitting across from her in, what looked like, a very brittle office chair, countering her extremely comfortable Barcalounger. She sank so deeply into the chair that her feet dangled at least two inches above the floor. Behind her, the clock on the wall sat neatly over her head. Making it remarkably convenient for Monroe to check the time without veering his head to gaze at the wall behind him, or to glance noticeably at his watch.

How considerate.

"What you're here for," he began, "is to let you gain perspective on what has happened to you. These sessions are to treat any stress that has occurred because of you accident. They are to assist you in handling your fears. To help you. . . .deal, as you so adequately put."

"So in other words, they are to help rebuild a broken woman," Eileen muttered, staring at her hands that were placed in he lap.

"You are not broken," Monroe stated simply.

Eileen closed her eyes. She had needed to hear that. Before, and even now, she had believed that therapy was only for crazies and rape victims. The fact that she was now sitting in a small office, confiding to a stranger about her deepest, darkest problems seemed incredibly weak and shameful. Also, she did not like the idea of some foreign man picking at her brain. Instead, however, he had managed to say the right thing less than three minutes into her session.

Even so, despite his comforting words, Eileen felt as though she had shattered in to millions of tiny fragments, and that she would never be able to piece them together now. They were so small, and too many parcels were lost.

"Now," Monroe started, sitting straighter in his stiff chair, "I want you to tell me what happened to you. In your own words."

Eileen stared at him. He knew perfectly well what she had been through. She wished that his chair was causing him great pain at that moment. Nevertheless, she answered truthfully.

"I was attacked," she murmured bluntly. Monroe did not look surprised. He merely nodded, waiting for her to continue. "I almost died."

"How?"

"I was getting ready to go to a party. And someone. . .someone broke into my apartment and – " She trailed off, shivering.

"It's okay," he interjected upon seeing her tremble. "You don't have to answer anything you don't want to."

She didn't say a word. Monroe continued.

"I just need to know how you feel about it. If you are ready to talk about it. Obviously," he smiled, "you're not."

"So what's the point of me being here if I'm not ready to talk about it?" Monroe looked at her softly.

"You have to start somewhere," he replied, shrugging. "Let me ask you a different question. How long as it been since your attack?"

There was a pause as she sat thinking. Just how long had it been? Sometimes it seemed as though she had just left the hospital. While other times she couldn't believe how little time had passed since she had moved out and had gotten a new apartment.

"About six weeks," she said finally.

"And how have you been dealing with it so far?"

"Not bad, I guess," she returned honestly. "Better than some people, anyway."

Eileen stopped. Was that true? Had she been dealing with her incident better than average? To be direct, she had never met anyone who had experienced something similar to her accident. She snorted at her last thought. The event that had led her here was anything but an "accident." In any case, she was the only one she knew of who had been beaten and left for dead in her apartment building. So how the hell would she know how she was dealing with it compared to others?

She cringed. This was so confusing.

Monroe seemed to know what she was thinking.

"Tell me, how exactly have you been handling it?" he questioned. "Have you been sleeping well?"

There was silence, and then Eileen shook her head.

"I see," he declared. "Have you talked to many people about it? Written about it in a journal or anything?"

More silence. Eileen, again, shook her head no. As a matter of fact, she hadn't talked to anyone about it. Well, almost anyone. Of course, she had told her mother and father. And every single one of her friends knew. But whenever they brought it up, Eileen refused to talk. She pretended that she had just remembered something urgent and took off, or briskly change the subject. Eileen hoped, like many people often do, that if she just ignored it long enough, it would go away.

All she wanted was to move on. She had tried so hard just to get on day by day without cracking. But everyone who cared about her was making it impossible to do so. They kept bringing her back to that terrible night. To her most terrorizing moment. It felt as though her family and friends were digging knifes into her wounds, making them burst. When all she wanted to do was heal.

And sometimes, she blocked herself from them out of bitterness. Although, she didn't like that feeling either. Once in a while, if she did think about that night, she would get an intense sensation that there was more to her attack than even she knew.

So, no. She had never really discussed her incident with anyone. Well, with the exception of him. . . .

"You haven't been talking about it to anyone. And you're having difficulty sleeping. Anything else?" Monroe asked gently, without criticism.

Fighting herself to not admit it, Eileen closed her eyes again. Trying to stop it from bursting from her lips. But like everything else, she failed.

"I can't go back," she whispered. Monroe looked slightly intrigued.

"Where?"

"There. I can't go back there. I couldn't even move out myself. My family had to do it. I don't ever want to see South Ashfield again. I can't set foot there. Not even to see Henry," she finished, leveling her voice.

"Who's Henry?" Eileen thought she saw his eyes flicker at the clock behind her.

"He – he's a friend."

She tried to stop herself from blushing. The thing was, Henry was the only person that she actually felt normal around. Everyone treated her like she was fragile. That if handled wrong, she'd break. But not him. He seemed almost able to read her thoughts and know exactly what she wanted.

Also, there was something deeper. Something wonderful. She felt a real bond with Henry. There was no telling why, but she did. Perhaps that was why she had told him more about her attack than anyone.

"A friend," he repeated. "And, your old neighbor?"

Gazing at him in shock, she opened her mouth.

"How did you know that?"

"You said you can't go back to South Ashfield. Not even to see him. So he lives there, correct?"

Impressed, she gave a half nod, half shrug.

"He's moving out too," Eileen said. "Where, I'm not sure. But he won't be living there much longer."

Eileen had only been able to communicate with Henry because it seemed as though he wanted to spend as much time out of his apartment building as he could. Among her parents, Henry had also been there to help her move out. Once, he had told her that he would be spending the night at a motel on the other side of town, and if she needed anything, to call him there.

Embarrassingly, Eileen had a bad habit of calling him up and night. The nightmares were just too frightening, and she didn't dare tell anyone besides Henry about them. Had it been anyone else, she would have hopped into her car, and driven to see them herself. But since she could no longer stand South Ashfield Heights, she would call Henry, hoping for some words of comfort.

"Do you talk to him about it?" he inquired.

"Yes," she grunted, recognizing that she had slightly fibbed earlier. Eileen expected to see Monroe staring angrily at her because of her dishonesty. However, he was smiling.

"That's good." He put his pen and paper down and folded his arms across his stomach. "Well, times up."

Eileen quickly got to her feet and shook his hand, muttering a small thank you. As she left his office, she trudged down the hallway thinking that her session hadn't gone as bad as she thought it would. Even so, it hadn't been fun. And she would have to do it again next week. Next week she would have to face her fears all over again.

Exiting through the main door, she thought that perhaps she did need therapy. Perhaps she was crazy.

I I I

"What's wrong?" Henry asked as the two left the dining strip. "You look. . .lost."

"I'm just thinking," she answered.

Therapy had been one of the hardest things she had ever done. Somehow, being in this town reminded her of how she had felt when she had been stuck in those sessions. She remembered having to tell Monroe her most terrible memories over and over again, along with all of the disturbing details. It had been awful. But nonetheless, helpful. Getting it out of her system and talking about it out loud to someone really did heal her. Even if it only healed her a little bit

She hadn't known why, but not too long after those sessions, did her nightmares stop. Anyway, those nightmares weren't like the ones she had now. She only dreamt of her attack then. But presently, they had started up again, and worse, had become more twisted, disturbing, and. . .frightening.

Frightening like she was at the moment, walking with Henry.

Not that she was afraid of Henry. Just. . . it was now dark. However, the amusement park was still going strong. Eileen was a little irritated at how long it was taking them to get out to the parking lot. Henry was having to weave through lines of crowded people. Eileen was only able to keep up with him by grabbing the back of his shirt.

"Will you. . .slow. . .down?" she gasped as Henry barely dodged a group of high school girls, who were gossiping loudly.

She felt sick. Although, she had no idea why. The sensation had only hit her as soon as the sun had set. She clung to Henry's shirt with her sweaty hand. Her fingers loosely gripping his fabric, she struggled to keep her weak hold on him.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

"I don't feel well," she admitted timidly.

That was an understatement. The hotness of the day was making her body shake, and she felt extremely feverish. All she wanted to do know was find their car and relax inside it while Henry drove them back to their motel room at Jack's Inn. They were rebuilding the Lake View Hotel, which she knew Henry would've loved to stay in. But Jack's was fine. She didn't care about a nice hotel room. Not now anyway..

Henry stopped abruptly. Turning to face her, his eyebrows were netted in concern.

"You okay?" Eileen grabbed his arm to keep herself steady. "Was it dinner?"

"Possibly."

They were near the entrance of the park. Their Chevy Corsica lost in the vast sea of cars.Eileen inwardly groaned. It would take them forever to find their car. She didn't think she possibly had the strength. Leaning against the brick wall by the park, she gave a deep sigh. Henry stared back at her. An odd expression on his face.

"Do you remembered where we parked?" he asked.

"No."

"Hey," he said softly. "Why don't you stay here? I'll go find the car and bring it around."

She smiled gratefully at him. A wave of nausea and gratitude washed over her.

"You sure?" He nodded.

"Just stay here. And put your keys between your fingers."

"Henry," she scolded, rolling her eyes. He held up his hands in defeat.

"Okay, okay," he surrendered. "But stay in the streetlight."

Turning around, he strolled away into the darkness. Eileen rested her head against the brick wall. After having it absorb the heat form the sun all day, it felt warm. Large crowds of people passed her as they walked in and out of the park. Her T-shirt snagged the small fibers on the wall. Little children ran to and fro, giggling madly,lifting stuffed animals greater and taller than themselves.

She smiled to herself. A memory of her and her father leaving this same park flickered quickly inside her mind. It was of her carrying a heavy, pink doll. She had cherished that doll. It had reminded her of those innocent times with her family. Long before life got so complicated and stressful that she never had time to appreciate the small joysin life.

Even though her body felt like collapsing with sheer exhaustion, a gentle flutter of peace leeched its way into her body. Closing her eyes, she let the cool night breeze relax her heated skin.

"BOO!"

Jumping terribly, Eileen sprang away from her wall that supported her so steadily. A white face with sharp teeth and beady blue eyes smiled insanely back at her. The Clown threw back his head and cackled viciously. It sounded awful. Eileen fought down the shudders that erupted suddenly throughout her body. Covering her eyes with a shaky hand in embarrassment, she heard him hiss at a few kids running through the gate. They screamed with delight and jetted into the dark lot.

"Are you afraid of clowns?" he leered in a high, steely voice. Eileen lowered her hand, but avoided his eyes.

"No," she exhaled firmly. However, her voice quivered lightly.

It was true. She wasn't afraid of clowns. But this one was freaking her out. Her eyes scanned for Henry and their car. But it was so dark, it would probably take him ages to find it.

"Why not?"

He was much too close to her now. His white, waxy skin gleamed under the moonlight, while the carnival music raged hysterically behind her. Her heart began to hammer furiously inside her chest. The scent of cotton candy and caramel-corn on his breath was completely overpowering.

Where the hell was Henry?

When she had failed to answer him, he dropped his voice and eyed her studiously.

"Oh," he whispered lustily. "You'll be scared soon. . . ."

And with that, he howled and leapt at a few more teenagers leaving Lake Side Amusement Park. The boys simply bolted in surprise, while the girls shrilled in fear. The Clown dashed back into the park, leaving the crowd of teenagers laughing nervously, and Eileen trembling dully.

The roller coaster gave another wild shriek, and she ran a petite hand over her slim face. That stupid kid who worked here had just ruined her night.If she ended up having worse nightmares tonight because of some dumb-ass clown, she was going to march down here tomorrow, and have a nice long talk with whoever in the hell owned this place.

Then again, he was probably just doing his job. How would he have known how terribly he had alarmed her? The other costumers here seem to love being spooked by the scary, monster clown. What would make her any different in his eyes? To him, she was just another tourist looking for a good fright in this mysterious town.

Feeling a tad bit more forgiving, Eileen calmed her breathing and folded her arms across her chest. Her purse dangling from the crook of her elbow. A few more families drifted in and out of the front gates. Friends met up with friends, while couples walked hand in hand toward their cars'. All in all, it was a beautiful. peaceful, sweet night. That is, aside from the creepy-looking demon clowns.

Turning her head, she stared down the dark sidewalk. At first she didn't think anything of it. There were so many people walking by that she had just assumed it was another family trotting home from a fun day in Silent Hill. But then she noticed that there wasn't a mother to the family. Or a father. Just a child. A little boy. . . .

I know that boy.

Eileen shook her head. Blinking a few times, she squinted through the crowd again. Her eyes hadn't been playing tricks on her. He was there, in his blue-striped shirt, walking further and further down the sidewalk towards the road away from the amusement park. She watched him advance into the night. Looking around for Henry, she checked her watch. He had been gone for only five minutes. It would likely it would be another five, ten, even fifteen minutes before he came around to pick her up.

Swaying slightly on the spot, trying to command her legs to move, she glanced back at the child. He was almost now completely out of her sight. Perhaps he was living proof that she wasn't going crazy. Maybe, she could help him find his mother, and ask him if he had been camping in Silent Hill woods the night before.

That would convince Henry that she hadn't been chasing shadows.

Ignoring the terrible lurch her stomach gave, Eileen forced herself through the mass of people and followed the boy. It was funny, he didn't walk like a normal child. He walked fast, straight, and proper. Not at all letting the awkwardness of his height get the better of him. And he seemed to know where he was going. He must've spent a lot of time on his own. Possibly, he was one of those independent kids who enjoyed doing things for themselves.But usually, those were the kinds of kids who weren't very close to their families. Having to learn to depend on only themselves at a very early age.

She tailed him across the street. Eileen had expected the road to be busy with traffic as so many people were strutting in and out of the carnival. However, only few cars actually left the lot, and they were all headed towards South Park Silent Hill. Probably a bunch of friends heading over to Annie's Bar for a drink. No one this late at night drove west of the park, through Paleville. It was an unspoken understanding, and not one person ever questioned why travelers refused to journey through there past ten o'clock.

But Eileen knew why. Henry wasn't the only one to know a few stories about Silent Hill.

South Vale and Paleville were now both deserted old neighborhoods. At first, South Vale had been nothing more than a ghost town, per say. But it's reputation had stretched, and Paleville was soon gone too. Not that many people had lived there before, anyway.

And strange rumors had surfaced years ago that it was a place where people would meet and practice. . .Well, Eileen never found out what, exactly. In any case, she had heard that high school boys would sometimes dare each other to spend a night out there in order for them to join their elite clique. Even so, one teenager had tried it, and had returned around three in the morning screaming about sacrifices, murder, and all sorts of nonsense. After that, the requirement changed from spending an entire night in Paleville, to a quarter past midnight for the local jock's initiation.

And so it went for years.

One night, however, a young freshman never came back at the necessary time. His friends waited five more minutes. He didn't come back. They waited another five minutes. Ten minutes. Twenty minutes. Forty minutes. After an hour, the kids ran to get help. The police searched everywhere. His mother and father pleaded with the cops to keep looking for him. And the entire town seemed to come together just to find the poor kid.

Three weeks later, his body was found dumped in the bushes near Silent Hill woods.

Since then, no arrogant youth ever attempted the dare. And local drivers began to avoid passing through there altogether after nightfall. But of course, that incident only attracted more tourists.

What was is with this town and scaring people, anyway?

So Eileen was surprised that the kid appeared to be heading toward the lonely, "haunted" neighborhood. At first, she had thought his destination were the charred ruins of The Lake View Hotel. But she didn't know why he would want to go there, since the building had gone up in flames years before. Construction hadn't quite started yet, but it was clearly off limits to anyone.

But he didn't stop there. Instead, he turned and kept moving west. The longer they walked, the darker it became. She could still hear the music from the carnival. Lights from the ferris wheel illuminated the dark sky when she chanced a look behind her shoulder.

Still, he walked on. Eileen didn't want to frighten him by shouting at him. But if he was scared by her following him, he didn't show it. Maybe he hadn't noticed her at all, but the longer they moved, the colder she became, and the dimmer the air around them turned. She could barely make out his sandy hair through the darkness.

Finally, she forgot trying not to frighten him, and opened her mouth.

"Hey! Kid! Are you lost?"

It was so black around them, she could barely make out his silhouette. He didn't appear to hear her. Except for the fact that he walked faster at her words.

"Wait, do you need any — "

He broke into a run.

Shit. I scared him.

She jogged after him. He sprinted up the dirt-side hill to evade her. A jolt of worry flew through her. He could get hurt.

"Hey, wait! I'm only trying to help — "

Eileen tripped on the hill. Getting quickly to off her knees, she didn't bother to dust off her jeans. Instead, she hobbled up the hill and gazed over the other side.

It was hard to see anything through the mist. Eileen wasn't sure where it had come from, but she squinted through the fog for any sign of the little boy. There were none. Rubbing her scratched elbow, her eyes flew over her surroundings. She shivered. It had grown cold very suddenly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a bush rustle.

She was about to go to the bush when she heard footsteps behind her.

Whirling around, she gave out a light yelp to see, what appeared to be a large, pink, stuffed animal. His pointy ears stiff above his head. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, thank goodness!" she hushed to the Robbie the Rabbit worker who had followed her from the park. She ungracefully slid down the dirt hill.

The man in the Robbie the Rabbit suit paused as she met him on the road.

"Sir, there's a little boy on the other side of that hill. He just ran off without anyone!" she said breathlessly.

The man didn't say anything. Upon looking closer at him through the dark, she saw that his costume was slightly different from the ones she had seen at the park. For one thing, he didn't have a hole coming out of his neck in which to see and breathe. He really did look like an oversized stuffed animal.

Also, something dark was smeared across the Rabbit's cheek. She couldn't tell what it was, it was so bleak. Perhaps he had fallen in the dust when following her.

"He's up there all alone!" she declared, frantically waving her arm in the other direction.

The stranger just stared at her.

"He's in Paleville," she stressed, hoping for him to realize how dangerous this all was. Everyone in Silent Hill believed Paleville to be bewitched.

Still, he did nothing.

Now Eileen was annoyed.

"Look," she grunted angrily, "just. . .go back and get someone, will you? If you're not going to help?"

It was impossible to tell through the mist and blackness of the night, but she was sure the face on the Robbie the Rabbit suit was smiling at her. More broadly than usual. Eileen's anger turned into uneasiness.

"Fine," she muttered. "I'll go back and find help myself."

She veered her body to stalk past him. Only when she tried, he sidestepped, blocking her way. Her anger flared up again.

"Cute," she spat. "Really funny. Do they pay you guys to be annoying?"

He answered her with silence. She tried to move around him again, but, like before, he moved into her path. They did this several times, before Eileen faked a left, and slid to his right, walking past him. She made it about half a step before his furry hand grabbed her arm.

"Will you stop?" She wrenched her arm violently out of his grasp.

She was much closer to him than she had been before. And she could see his mask much better now. His bunny eyes were big and bright. All of the other costumes held that identical expression. Only this one was different. Something wasn't the same. It was bothering the hell out of her.

For a split second, she wondered how he could see and breathe. There appeared to be no holes, or any openings at all in his outfit in which to do so. She felt like she really was in the presence of Robbie himself. Strangely, that didn't help calm her.

And he was still smiling at her. The fake mouth, with the fake bunny teeth, and fake lips were beaming harder at her than she had thought before. Like the material had moved itself into a wider smirk. It unsettled her in a very alarming way. She could've sworn his mouth to the costume had changed. Because he wasn't smiling at her anymore. . . .

He was grinning.

Without knowing it, Eileen slowly backed away from him, her hiking boots scuffing the pavement.

"Okay. Uh, could – could y-you uh, could you please let me by?" she stuttered timidly.

For the first time, he answered her with something other than silence.

His head moving from side to side slowly, he shook his head no.

Eileen strived to think.

"Listen," Eileen hushed, "I have to get back. I don't have time to play games. There's a little boy who's – "

She was cut off by his index finger. Which he had lifted to his lips as if to say: Shhhhhh.

Her lungs fluttered with air. Eileen's throat became very dry, and another cool bolt of electricity sprinkled down her spine. She couldn't even scream when he took a small step toward her.

The blotch that was smeared on his face was much more visible. It was smudged, making his pretend fur clump together over his mask. Now looking at it, she knew it wasn't dust. Whatever it was, it was wet. . . Fresh. . . .Red.

"You'll be scared soon. . . ."

He took another step to her through the still, hazy, damp mist. Eileen couldn't move her legs. She couldn't think. Couldn't yell. Couldn't breathe.

Closer. . .

She was shaking.

Closer. . .

His grin was now larger

Closer. . .

Those hands were reaching out for her.

Closer. . .

Eileen's fright broke, and panic filled her instead. She didn't know what made her do it. But a small voice inside her told her to, and she minded. Bringing her foot back, she jammed it has hard as she could into the mascot's stomach. Kicking him like she was breaking down a door, he flew back as soon as her boot made contact with his soft belly. He didn't even yell in pain as he crashed to the ground.

Eileen ran.

Her twisted ankle sent stabbing pain up to her shins and she bolted back down the street toward the carnival. She ignored the ache, and ran faster than she knew she ever could. Whatever It was, It was getting up and now heading after her. She could hear Its oversized shoes beating against the ground.

She could just barely see the lights of the park through the fog. If she could just make it. . .

It was gaining on her. The fabric of his overalls whooshed louder and louder. But no harsh gasps came from behind her. Did things like that breathe? Eileen gripped her purse, it was heavy, and if all else failed, she would throw it over her shoulder. If nothing else, to slow him, or whatever the hell it was, down.

The lights were now brighter. Only slightly blurry now by the gloom.

Just a little further. Just a little further.

She rounded onto the sidewalk, almost tripping over it. Her foot burned with agony. Stumbling madly, Eileen pushed every ounce of strength into her heals. She was getting there. She was so close.

Almost there. . .

Grabbing onto the wall of Lake Side Amusement Park, she could hear the footsteps behind her fade. Eileen, however, only pushed on firmer. The stitch in her chest was now overwhelming. If she was going to die this way, she prayed no one would ever know.

Darting around the corner by the front gate, she was greeted with a enormous burst of chatter. The crowds were just as big as ever. And everyone didn't seem to notice the raw sight of Eileen, running for her life. She swung her head behind her, looking for her pursuer.

Only night stared back.

Backing away slowly, she bumped into something warm.

"Ahhh!" she screeched.

"Whoa!"

It was Henry.

He stood there, the car running in front of the gate. People were having to walk around it just to get into the parking lot. No one bothered to look at it for too long. It was a piece of junk. Who would want it?

"Henry!" She threw her arms around him.

"Eileen! Where did you go? What happened to you?" she heard him say in her ear. He sounded worried.

She couldn't answer. Her lungs were screaming for air. The atmosphere around them was much warmer, and she felt hot. Looking around over his shoulder, she noticed how clear everything looked. The mist had lifted mysteriously

"Oh, Henry," she whispered, hugging him tighter.

"Hey," he hushed gently, "what's wrong? I just got back. I didn't see you, so I went to look for you. What happened?"

She was just about to answer him when she saw It. Its pink, floppy ears bouncing heavily towards her. This time, she couldn't stop. She screamed.

"Hey! Hey!" the thing said calmly. Henry had spun around to see what she was yelling at.

"Go away!" she stammered. It didn't.

Then she noticed the dark hole in Robbie's mask, along with a pair of two brown eyes peering back at her. It wasn't the same person who had chased her. Quickly, Robbie pulled off his head.

A young man emerged from underneath it. His matted brown hair was slicked with sweat. And he had terrible acne. Setting his bunny mask on the ground, she saw that this kid was no older than seventeen.

"Hey, lady, are you okay? Sorry I scared you." Eileen didn't say anything, she was just trying to get her voice back. "I saw you limping around that corner, and wanted to know if you were all right."

Henry's hand moved to her back.

"Honey," he said softly, "tell me what's wrong."

"You," she panted, pointing at the teenager, "you have some. . . crazy guy in one of your costumes. . . chasing people!"

The kid looked shocked.

"A – what?"

"I saw a little boy," she began. "I went to follow him because I thought he might be lost. He took me all the way down the street and I lost him over the hill. When I turned around, there was a man in a Robbie the Rabbit suit, and he chased me all the way back here."

She said this all very fast.

"You followed a little boy?" Henry asked slowly. Eileen avoided his eyes.

"Some guy harassed you?" the young man asked. She nodded.

"And he chased me."

The kid pressed his lips together in anxiety. Then, he pulled a small hand-radio from his costume's overalls.Flipping it one, he spoke loudly into it.

"Don, this is Jimmy. A woman here claims that a man in a Robbie the Rabbit suit harassed her and chased her a few moments ago."

A second later, a very muffled, static voice replied back.

"Who told you that?"

The kid named Jimmy shrugged.

"I don't know, some lady!"

The radio gave another blurry response, and Jimmy said over and put it back into his pocket. Henry rubbed her shoulders softly and whispered something warm into her ear. However, she had no idea what he said. The teenager looked up and smiled nervously.

"I'm really sorry Miss," he started. "We had one of our costumes stolen a few nights ago — though, I don't know who would want to lug that big head around for fun — and every once in a while, teenagers like to come here and hound our customers."

"So what are you going to do about it?" Henry questioned in a firm, but level voice.

"We're going to look into it. We'll probably call the police and have them search the area. But it's kinda out of my hands."

Another blare from the radio interrupted him. Henry now had both of his arms around her. It felt so good. To be held. Eileen closed her eyes dreamily.

"Yeah?" he spoke into it. After understanding, to what Eileen heard, a bunch of fuzzy shouts, Jimmy stared at Eileen.

"Don wants to know where this happened."

Eileen paused.

"Near Paleville."

Jimmy's eyes glazed over. And he stared at Eileen with an expression mixed with disbelief and admiration. After holding the radio in his hands for a few moments, Don screamed again. Jimmy, eyes still on Eileen, raised it to his mouth.

"She says near Paleville," he muttered. Nothing came out of the radio. And not waiting for a reply, Jimmy clicked it off. "Is there anything else I should know?"

"The little boy – " she said.

"We'll look into that as well," Jimmy smiled at her. A real smile. But he looked scared shitless. With that he turned around to leave.

"Wait!" Eileen shouted. He stopped and turned around.

"Yes?"

"You need to fire that clown who works here. He was being very rude and. . .creepy to everyone."

Jimmy looked confused. He turned to Henry to see if he knew what she was talking about. When Henry shrugged, Jimmy picked up his mask, and dusted off the head. Finally, he stared at Eileen.

"Ma'am," he uttered, still muddled, "there are no clowns currently employed at Lake Side Amassment Park. . .at the moment."

To be continued. . . .

Note to the reviewer: Okay, Bravo and kudos to anyone who actually read this entire chapter. I know it was very long, and it takes a lot of energy to read a story. I hope you guys found it entertaining nonetheless. Plus, there was a lack of Henry in it, but it's an important chapter. For a variety of different reasons.

Thank you all who reviewed. I'm sorry, I won't be able to write back personal thank you's to this chapter, however, I'll try and email every one of you and tell you thanks. But this chapter is almost sixteen pages as it is.

I love you all, and I really appreciate anything you have to say.

U: Thanks, maybe she'll die.

Nblkolt: Hey, thanks, I love H/E too. Your review meant a lot to me.

Black Demon: Thanks, we need more Henry/Eileen.

WulFox: I've beaten the game a few times. And I checked out the game script. Thank a bunch.

DaLilMoomba: You are so sweet. It's not perfect, but I try to have good grammar and spelling. Thanks!

Bad Guy: Walter and Eileen isn't really my thing. I would never write that kind of fic. It's not my bag baby. Thanks.

Evil: Who said Walter was back? Maybe Eileen's going crazy. And yes, I don't do sex scenes. To bad, so sad. lol. Thanks for the review.

Servo: Hey thanks. You're a great writer. I really should review, and tell you that myself. But it meant a lot to me. Thanks again.

Saddened Soul: You're a great writer too. Keep it up. I'm really enjoying your one story. You're cool, thanks!

Shimmy123: There could be more fics about them (wink wink). Thank again, that made me feel great.

Skittlefratz: I'm glad you liked. Nurse Rachel is also in Silent Hill 4. Along with some other people. Thanks again.

innocent passerby: Thanks again, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Rodarian: Silly Rabbit. Very appropriate for this chapter, haha. I always value your opinion. You're right, Eileen is very normal compared to the other women of the series. Perhaps that's why I like her. Thanks for the review!

Lucifer's Garden: Ah, I am forgiven. Thank you, thank you. That had made my day.

Crimson Alessa: You are very nice. I really love your writing. I hope you write even more. And don't ever stop. You really made me smile. Thank you for that.

Jade-Dusk: You are sweet. I take donations. Hehe, thanks!

Larka Vanimedle: Oh, you're awesome! I love reading your reviews. You rock! Thanks again!