Chapter 2: Light and Dark

He was born in the light, and cast into the dark. Pain is his companion, and misery is his life. -Peppy


Fox cautiously walked up the stairs, and walked across the walkway. He poked his head into his old room, and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Just the boxes he'd used to move in with, still packed, and his bed, with its layers of dust. There were other articles of his lying about. He continued down the loft towards his parents' old room. Still, nothing unusual. Only a lot of dust. The pictures were still up on the walls, and the bed still lay made on the opposite wall. The dresser was starting to fall apart, but he'd worry about that some other day.

Something suddenly bumped and rattled in his room. He perked up his ears, as he turned to look in that direction. Fox slowly walked down the loft towards the sound, and found that all the things in his room had been unpacked. His clothes were in his closet, his guitar in its stand, and his pictures on the walls. Was he going mad? Hadn't this room looked uninhabited a moment ago?

He slowly stepped backwards, and turned as if to run, when he crashed into the banister. The wind was knocked out of him, and he fell to his knees, gasping for air. The whole house then seemed to drop fifty degrees. Fox could see his breath, or what little was coming out of his gaping mouth. He was wearing a black button up pinstriped shirt, with black boot cut jeans, and black boots, so needless to say, he wasn't prepared for a sudden and dramatic drop in temperature.

His fingers were becoming numb, and his face was tingling. Something was definitely not right here. He couldn't explain it, but he had the urge to get away from here. Fast. He had to get up, had to get out of this house. Who cared if he seemed cowardly?

Fox slowly got to his feet, and was about to make a mad dash for the door, when he heard a sound he hadn't heard since he was a child. His own laughter. He turned his head to see the child version of him, staring at him with those cold, green eyes. Fox was in disbelief as he watched his self watch him.

"Daddy, let's play." The child said, speaking directly to Fox. Fox looked around, and seeing nothing or no one else around, turned back and pointed at himself with a questioning look on his face.

"Me?"

"You're funny, daddy." The young vulpine responded, smirking a little bit. The older Fox was stunned for a moment, unsure of what to do. He turned and starting hurrying towards the staircase. He had to go. Now. This was getting too weird for him. ' I have to seek counseling after this.' He thought as he hastily approached his goal.

"Daddy, you can't leave," the youth said, with a hint of malice," We're just about to have lots of fun together. Stay."

This only made Fox pick up the pace to a run now, rounding the top of the stairs, and starting down them. After he got half way, he noticed that the stairs were moving upwards, and he wasn't moving at all. He looked over his shoulder to see his younger self at the top of the steps, holding out his hands, with an ominous look on his face. Fox could feel his heart beating at an incredible speed; it felt like it would fly from his chest.

"Come on, Fox, I told you, you can't hide. You can't and won't escape me. Now, be a good little fox and come here."

Fox had all he could take, so he jumped the banister, and fell ten feet to the floor. He twisted his ankle on the landing, but he didn't care. He immediately got up and made a break for the door, but something big was blocking it. It looked like a giant pig, about six feet tall, with rotting skin and horns coming out of its forehead and shoulders. Its fangs were two feet long, and its eyes were a deeper red than blood. It roared, stood up on its hind legs, and hit the ground so hard it knocked Fox down. It was on him before he could realize what had just happened. The creature slowly opened its mouth, saliva and blood dripping from its fangs, and started to enclose them on the helpless fox.

He covered his head and closed his eyes, but nothing happened. He laid there for what felt like an eternity, and still nothing. Fox slowly opened one eye, then the other to find no creature, nor any evidence to prove anything except him had been there. The droplet of paint on his hand was gone, and his ankle was no longer in pain. The receiver was off the hook, and he could hear Peppy yelling madly.

"Fox! Fox! Answer me! Are you ok?"

Fox got up, but immediately regretted it as his head started pounding furiously. He grabbed it, then reached and retrieved the phone that was swinging wildly to his right. His front faced the wall opposite the front door. His eyes trailed up to look at the open walkway, searching for the kit. Nothing.

"Peppy?" He couldn't hide the pain in his voice. While rubbing the back of his neck gently, he wondered how the phone got off the hook, and how it was that Peppy was on the other end of the line.

"Fox! Thank God. Are you ok? You were talking normal, then dropped the phone and started screaming bloody murder. What happened?"

Fox leaned on the table and thought about that for a minute. Is it possible he'd just had a seizurer? Then all that he'd seen had been induced by the convulsions. It hadn't been real. He felt a wave of relief pass over him.

" I just had a small convulsion, nothing to serious. I guess I haven't been taking my medications as diligently as I should be. Sorry."

Peppy went into a long speech about the importance of taking medications when one was appointed to, and Fox just agreed, throwing in the 'yes' and 'I understands' when he thought necessary, glad that all that had happened was just some convulsion-induced fantasy.

" Anyway, we'll be there in about thirty minutes, ok? Now, go take your medicine, all right? Bye."

" Yeah, all right. Bye." Fox hung up the phone, and ran up the stairs to grab his wallet, so he could run and get some more smokes, feeling a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He ran past his room towards a mislabeled box sitting on the walkway, then stopped short, and walked slowly backwards and looked in it.

It was all unpacked.


Well, what do y'all think of that? Read and Review, please, and I will love you forever.