As a heads up, there is some moderate violence towards a senior citizen, but... unless you have a twisted sense of humor, like me, I guess, you may just laugh... maybe.

Yeah, we're all just so fucked up, hey... But just go with it. Bathe in your darkness, let it consume you. Rise above your peers! Dance on your enemy's grave!

Or you could just read...

Molly's great-grandma from Ireland came to visit as she promised, and to say that the little girl was afraid of the old lady would be an understatement.

Grandma Aoife was a scary old lady; she had wrinkles all over her face and false teeth, and she smelled really bad. Plus, she made Molly wear itchy dresses all the time now, and Molly had never felt so hopeless.

She just wanted her Daddy back. Her Grandma Aoife was a mean old woman who kept calling her a "naughty little girl" even when Molly hadn't done anything wrong.

Whenever she put her elbows onto the table, she yelled at Molly; whenever she skipped in the hall, she yelled at Molly. And whenever Molly so much as breathed, the old lady yelled at her, and Molly just wanted her to go away.

At least she had her friend Nny. He still came around to visit at night and tell her bedtime stories. At first, his stories scared her, but then Molly started to see the funny side eventually, and now bedtime had become her favourite part of the day.

Her Mommy would tuck her in and kiss her goodnight, telling her a cute story about kittens, and when she left, Nny would arrive and tell her an even better, scarier story.

The scarier, the better... Who needed kittens when you could have exploding heads and weird dimensions about rooms with moose inside them?

Molly lay under her sheets, surrounded by her unicorn plushies. She'd made a protective fort to shield her from any scary monsters out there.

Not that Molly had to worry about monsters anymore. Nny was coming soon, and he would chase them all away for her.

However, he was taking his time tonight, but she wouldn't worry. Molly was sure he was just running late.

She should be sleeping, but she was just too excited. Instead, she lay on her belly under the sheets, drawing a picture of her and Nny as best friends. In all her drawings, he had a knife in his hand and Molly a lollipop, and the likeness was so uncanny.

She couldn't wait to show him when he arrived. There were standing beneath a magical rainbow, and it was so pretty and colourful.

Yet he still hadn't shown up. Normally, he would be pressing his face against her window now, smiling into the room all crazy-like, yet he still hadn't arrived.

A knot tied in her chest, and she sucked in a deep breath, letting it all out. A blonde curl fell in front of her face.

No. He would come. He would not forget her like Daddy did.

She glanced at her bedside clock. The small hand was still on the nine, but the bigger hand was creeping towards the twelve...

Molly couldn't tell the time yet, but Nny always turned up around nine, and he had not disappointed her yet.

He would come...

"No, he won't..."

Molly froze as the voice came from under her bed. She whimpered, covering her ears.

It was Lucia.

She had started talking to Molly again. It appeared that hiding her under the bed was not enough. Lucia had found a way to speak again and tell her mean things.

"No. You're wrong, Lucia. NNY will come. He's my best friend, and friends don't disappoint each other. Besides, he promised..."

"No, he won't. He doesn't like you, Molly. He doesn't even want to be your friend. Who would want to be friends with a bad little girl like you? That's why your Daddy didn't come for your birthday; no one loves you, not even Mommy... not even NNY..."

Molly squeezed her eyes, and tears gushed from her eyelashes, dripping onto her drawing. It smudged the drawing of Nny, making him look blurred and distorted.

"Please, Lucia. Please stop being mean to me..."

"A bad little girl who no one loves..."

She choked on a sob, burying her face into her pillow, and cried. Lucia was right. Nny wouldn't come. Maybe he didn't love her after all and had abandoned her just like her Daddy had.

Maybe her Mommy would stop loving her too and send her away to an orphanage. No one would ever love Molly; she was doomed to be lonely for the rest of her life.

A tap at her window made her jolt next, and then she stopped crying, lifting her head from her pillow.

What was that sound? In her confusion, it didn't make sense.

Lucia was still saying nasty things to her as Molly tried her best to block her out, but her words still rang loud and clear

"Bad little girl..."

"No one will ever love you..."

"Alone forever..."

The knock came again, and then a voice followed, "Molly? You in there? It's me, NNY. Open up."

Molly's heart soared the moment she heard his voice, and then the dark clouds disappeared. At once the world became a beautiful, sunny place, and Lucia's nasty, taunting voice was all but forgotten.

Tossing the sheets off her head, she glanced up at the window, spying that crazy, smiling face through the glass.

His big eyes found her then, and now his smile stretched even wider. He pressed his nose to the window, fogging it with his breath. "Molly!"

Wasting no time, Molly climbed out of bed to let the scary neighbour man into her room, undoing the latch.

He climbed inside, hauling himself up into her room, and now he stood before her once again like a creepy guardian angel. Molly gawped up at him, her eyes filling with tears.

He turned to close the window behind him, but then he peered down at her, raising an eyebrow. "You all right?"

Something strange came over her next as she could hardly believe he was here, especially after everything Lucia just said.

She was wrong. Nny did love her, and he wouldn't abandon her like her Daddy did. The scary neighbour man vanished behind a veil of tears, and now she threw her arms around him, burying her face against his tummy.

Nny flinched at the sudden contact. "What the f—?"

Molly howled, completely oblivious to the confused, horrified man above her. His shirt muffled her cries, and that's how they remained for a while.

She knew Nny didn't like it all that much when she hugged him, yet he still let her, and she was grateful. She really needed a shoulder to cry on right now since Lucia upset her.

He laughed nervously. "Molly, what's gotten—?"

"Please... please don't ever leave, NNY. I... don't know what I would do without you..."

Molly cried harder, making his shirt all wet with her tears. It was already wet with ketchup anyway, but her tears just made it worse.

He shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "What the hell gave you the impression that I would leave?"

She hiccoughed. "You... didn't turn up when the big finger was on the nine, and it's almost on the twelve now. I... thought you had forgotten all about me... like... like Daddy did... I promise, NNY. I promise I will be a good girl, just don't leave... "

More tears gushed from her eyes, yet Nny's shirt was there to absorb every one of them, along with all the red ketchup too.

He remained silent as she wept against him, and Molly was sure she felt him wilt. Had she made him sad again? She didn't mean to make him sad. Maybe she really was a bad little girl, like Lucia said.

Nny gave a small chuckle next, leaning down to meet her eyes. He was still barely visible through the tears, but his face soon loomed into view, and she finally smiled.

Now she could see him in all his glory again. His messy, blue-black hair fell over his eyes as his skin was still sickly beige, but there were ketchup stains on his face, too. One cut above his eye leaked with blood.

Molly's heart pricked.

He was bleeding...

Nny produced another raspy laugh, placing a hand on her head. He ruffled her hair. "Don't be silly. You are a good girl, Molly, and I wouldn't leave you. I told you, remember? We will always be friends..."

She wiped another tear from her eye and smiled. "Yeah, I know. The universe depends on it after all."

He grinned. "Exactly. Such a smart girl."

Nny tapped her nose then stood back up, peering over at her bedside clock. His eyes bugged. "Ten o'clock? Damn, seems I lost track of time. That last one really took it out of me, though. I guess that's what happens when one is faced with impending doom... Hehe, doom..." he giggled.

Molly took his words in, though they hardly registered. He was talking weird again, but she just went along with it now, pretending as if she knew what he was talking about.

She pointed up at his cut. "You're hurt. Did someone hurt you, NNY?"

Alarmed, he reached up and felt his cut. He winced, bringing his fingers back down. A disgusted look warped his features. "Shit! The bitch got me!"

Molly gasped, placing her hands on her hips like her Mommy did when she said bad words. "Hey, no cursing! Or I will make you put a penny in the swear jaw!"

Molly pointed at her swear jar. It was surprisingly empty since she was such a good little girl, but every now and then, if she tripped up the stairs or knocked her knee into the corner of the table, she would shout, "Shit!" or "Fuck!"

The horror!

That was how the four boys talked on that cartoon show, anyway, with all the snow, so why not?

Nny growled, wiping his fingers on his shirt. "Sorry, just shocked me a little. This isn't good. I'm bleeding my own blood! I need disinfectant. It's okay, Molly. I know where the bathroom is. I remember from when Squee still lived here..."

He left her bedroom, making his way up the hall. Startled, Molly tiptoed after him in her pink nightie, and soon she found him shuffling around in the cabinet above the bathroom sink.

Molly glanced at her Mommy's bedroom door. By the sounds of her soft breathing, she was fast asleep. Then she glanced at the guest bedroom where Grandma Aoife was staying.

What if one of them woke up and saw Nny?

"Ah, there it is..."

Nny found the disinfectant as he unscrewed the cap, pouring it all over himself, and the sharp smell filled the bathroom. Molly grimaced, covering her nose.

"It smells awful..." she gasped.

"Yeah, but it does the trick. Now it will kill any shit that was lingering beneath that bitch's fingernail. Damn, those acrylics are sharp!"

"Quiet," Molly whispered, "And what did I say about swearing?"

Nny finished dousing himself, peering her way. He was all wet and covered in that stinky-smelling liquid, but at least it had cleared all the dirty blood away.

Molly was glad. She didn't like it when Nny was hurt.

"Um... sorry. I'll put a penny in the swear jaw when we get back to your room."

He put the disinfectant back into the cupboard, and now they walked back to her room. Molly shut the door quickly. She swore she heard a sound from Grandma Aoife's room.

Hopefully, they hadn't woken her up. The old woman couldn't hear without hearing aids, anyway, so they might be okay.

Molly moved over to her drawer next, handing Nny a Band-Aid. "Here, to stop the bleeding."

Nny blinked down at the pink Hello Kitty Band-Aid surprised. Then he sighed, ripping off the seal, but then Molly stopped him.

"No, let me do it. I will take care of you, NNY. Then when I fix your boo-boo, you can finally tell me a bedtime story!"

She smiled up at him. He stared at her stunned for a while, unsure of what to say. "Okaaay... Sure, why not. I'm not used to having anyone taking care of me. May make a pleasant change for once. "

Molly pushed him down into one of the small chairs, and then when he made himself comfortable, she ripped off the rest of the seal then placed the Band-Aid over his cut. The blood flow stopped immediately.

She beamed. "All better!"

Nny reached up, poking at the Band-Aid. He smiled. "Hey, thanks. You got the bleeding to stop."

"You're welcome, NNY. But before you get up again, I just need to do one more thing..."

He raised a brow. "Yeah, what's that?"

She gave a sneaky smile, then rushed forward, kissing his head quickly where she'd placed the Band-Aid. His eyes blurred in horror.

"I kiss you better!"

He stared at her perplexed. Then he gave a nervous, raspy laugh, tugging at his shirt collar. His face burnt deep crimson. "Th-thank you again, Nurse Molly. I feel much better now..."

She blushed a little herself, gazing down at her feet. "You're welcome, NNY."

A moment of silence as Nny watched her for a short while. The clock ticked on the bedside table, and Molly wondered what he was thinking about.

Did he really like her too? Lucia's cruel words echoed back to her, but they were drowned out by Nny's presence.

He made everything better.

He sniggered, a short, wary sound, then rose from the chair. "All right. Now get back to bed, you. It's storytime..."

Molly hurried to bed and climbed under the sheets, making herself comfortable. Just as Nny dragged the chair towards her bed, she pulled out the drawing from beneath her pillow and showed it to him.

Nny froze once he cast his eyes on it. "A drawing?"

Molly beamed, showing her teeth. "Yeah! It's a picture of us! See, we're best friends, like we are in real life!"

He gawped at the picture like he had stumbled upon a rare piece of art. He plucked it up from her hands, his eyes raking over the drawing. Something glinted in his eye, but it disappeared in a flash. It looked like he was going to cry again.

Next, his face twisted as he squeezed his eyes shut, gulping for air. Then he breathed a heavy sigh and peered her way. A pained smile tightened his lips. "It's... beautiful, Molly... Th-thank you..."

She smiled wider. "Would you like to keep it?"

His eyes widened as he clutched it to his chest. "You... would give this to me?"

"Of course! You're my best friend, and I love you forever. Now go on, finish telling me that story about the exploding heads. What happened after the Nun blew everyone up? Did the toddler come back for round two? Did the grandma hit you with her purse? Was it heavy with coins?"

Nny opened his mouth, seeming to forget himself. He still clutched the drawing like his life depended on it. "Well... the demoness Damned Elize shouted at me and—"

The door creaked open, and Nny vanished like the wind. Molly had no idea where. One moment he was there, and the next, he was gone.

She didn't have time to call for him as Grandma Aoife was standing at the door, clutching her walking stick in her wrinkled hand. Molly's heart pounded when she laid eyes on it.

Every time she saw that stick, she thought Grandma Aoife would hit her with it. She pulled the sheets up to her nose, covering her face.

The old woman looked angry at her. Her mouth looked strange since she hadn't put her false teeth in yet, and it terrified Molly. She looked like an evil turtle.

"You bad little girl... You should be asleep!"

Molly shook her lip. "I... I was just..."

The old woman hobbled into the room, balancing on her stick, and Molly's heart thumped in her chest.

Oh no, she was going to hit her with her walking stick!

"Don't you answer me back! Little children like you should be sleeping at this ungodly hour. Bad, bad little girl! Now go on, back to sleep with yer. You wait until I tell your mother in the morning. You'll be sent to boarding school for life when—"

The old lady's words were muffled next when Nny's hand wrapped around her mouth. At first, she struggled, scratching at his hand feebly with her gnarly old fingernails, but in the end, she was no match for the twenty-something, poopy-scooping, young whippersnapper as she slumped against him, falling asleep.

Molly's jaw hung loose as Nny lay her down onto the floor, stuffing a napkin away into his pants pocket. A grimace formed over his face when he turned her over with his steel-toe boot. "Yikes. I thought I smelled old people before... Scary one, isn't she?" He giggled. "It's a good job I had that chloroform left over from that hooker, hey, or we'd still be listening to her drivel."

A small squeak left Molly's mouth. Nny gushed, totally smitten by her frightened little sound. "Ah, almost takes me back. Maybe we should call you Squee 2.0 from now on, Molly. Would you like that? Squee was a nice kid, but he barely talked much. With you, however—"

"Will Grandma be okay?!"

Nny paused, peering down at the sleeping old woman. She babbled on the floor, hugging her walking stick. He waved a dismissive hand. "Sure she will... You don't have to worry about her until morning. Now we can get back to our story!"

Molly worried her lip. "But... won't she be mad? I don't want her to be mad at me, NNY. She scares me and I worry she will hit me with her walking stick. Please, make her better again..."

Something flashed inside Nny's eyes at the sound of her pleading words, and now he stepped over the old woman, kicking her stick away under the bed. "No. She's a malicious old woman, Molly, who only serves to make you miserable. People like her... ugh... It's best not getting into all that now. You're still very young, still very impressionable. Plus, you're innocent, and I would hate to take away that sweet perception of yours. But just know this..."

He plonked down onto the bed beside her, making the mattress shake. Then he leaned close, narrowing one of his eyes as he gazed at her long and hard. Molly stared, her mouth agape.

What was he doing? Why was he looking at her all crazy like that?

"You are not a bad little girl. Don't listen to a word she says. She's just jealous because you're young and pretty, and she's a decrepit dinosaur from the Stone Age. Trust me, I know... Grandma comes from an era when children still worked at the workhouse, so you may as well be a different species to her. You're a non-entity in her eyes, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. You are relevant, Molly. Vicious adults like her have no idea of the impact of their cruel words. It's one thing to receive cruelty at the hands of your fellow children, but not from someone who should love and protect you. She's not worthy of your attention, Molly. Don't devote any more precious thought to her... because she'll be dead in a few years, anyway. Just look at her. So old!"

He cackled at his own twisted joke, and all Molly could do was stare in shock. She didn't want Grandma Aoife to die, since it would only make her Mommy sad. But it would make Molly's life so much better if the mean old lady wasn't around anymore.

So, she laughed along with Nny, and he looked down at her impressed. "That's right, Molly. Laugh at the old bitch because in a few years, you'll be dancing on her grave!"

Molly stopped giggling, pursing her lips. Now she pointed at the swear jar. Nny sighed and stood up, dragging his steel-capped feet over to the jar. He went to put a penny inside, but then Molly folded her arms.

He cocked an eyebrow. "What? I'm doing just as you said."

"I think you should put more than a penny in the swear jar, NNY..."

He blinked. "Like what?"

"A dollar! No, five dollars. No, fifty... no, a million dollars! You swear far too much!"

He almost choked. "What? I don't have that kind of money!"

"Tough! One million dollars, NNY, or I will wash your mouth out with soap!"

And she would, too. That wasn't just an idiom in her household; her Mommy had literally cleaned her mouth with soap once when she said a very bad word (e.g. it was "fuck").

Nny exhaled, running a palm down his face. "How about I just buy you ice cream? How's that sound?"

Molly stopped a moment to think. Then she beamed. "Okay! Now come on, come back over here so you can finish telling me your story. What happened after the demoness Damned Elize shouted at you?"

Nny matched her grin and returned to her bed, sitting down beside her. "Well, I started screaming and stuff about how unfair everything was since I was finally dead, yet I was still confused, and then I disappeared with a poof of smoke and met Mr. Satan... He was so much nicer than God, and told me everything I wanted to know."

Molly lay down and yawned, closing her eyes slightly. "Well, I'm glad Mr. Satan was so nice to you. People should be nice to you, NNY, because you are nice to me..."

Nny smiled. "You too, Molly. I hope you only meet nice people from now on. You deserve the world and more..."

"You... you too, NNY... because... you're... awesome... " Molly drifted off at last, and now silence filled the room.

The old woman continued to snore on the floor, almost ruining the pleasing sounds of Molly's gentle breathing.

Nny gazed down at Molly's Great Grandma. Maybe he should stick a sock in her mouth since there wasn't much else to do now since Molly had fallen asleep.

He sighed. It looked as if the author had passed the baton over to him now since Molly was away in dreamland, so now the point of view had fallen on his shoulders, which was baaad... Head-hopping was a terrible writing habit, but Nny digressed...

Yet if he wasn't the main character of a comic book, then he was a character in a fanfiction story, and what was the world coming to? Nny was insane enough to be aware of his fictitious reality, but weren't we all just the protagonist of some author's fucked up story?

He turned his focus away from the old woman now, since he didn't want to devote any further attention to her, and glanced at Molly.

She truly was precious, especially when she slept all peacefully, and how this small, tiny child had turned his world upside down.

Before, he was a crazy, cold-hearted monster. Well, Nny was still those things, but he wasn't so cold anymore. Molly had brought some warmth back into his system, and the revelation shocked him right down to the marrow of his bones.

It both terrified and thrilled him. Molly was a distraction towards his ultimate goal of coldness, sure, but she was the best goddamn distraction any homicidal person could hope for, and sometimes... he wondered if he even still wanted to be cold.

The moon may be pretty, but he'd found something prettier...

And he'll be damned if he'll ever leave her, just as she feared. Whoever had planted those thoughts into her young mind would pay dearly, because it couldn't be farther from the truth.

He would never leave her; he meant every word he said. Nny had not loved many things in his life. So he'd like to think that if he ever did find something worth fighting for, then he'd never let go.

From now on, wherever Molly goes, Nny goes.

She was stuck with him now, and poor thing. But the universe did depend on their undying friendship after all.

A friendship that would last the ages.

Thank you once again for reading. Sorry about that breaking of the fourth wall, but Nny is just enlightened, that's all; he knows he's fictional...

Aren't we all, though?

Did you really think that old bitch was going to get a pass because she's old? A bully is a bully, and Nny is a perfect character for seeing just that because he doesn't discriminate. At least she wasn't threatening to eat Molly, though. Molly is her mother's firstborn... Squee reference?

So long, my fellow sapiens. Don't let the beaver-tailed mutant demon babies bite...