A/N: Hey, guys! While I continue to finish up Chapter 2, I would like to share a particular scene I've had in my head. It's a fast forward from the other relationships that developed before this. This is also the foundation between my OC, Ruth, and Pennywise. So there is some slight OOC here, but only a sliver.
I started watching the movie again last night for the fourth time. I now have to wonder the time frame of when the Losers all met. Any ideas?
Anyway, enjoy the read.
She laid there in the darkness, waiting for sleep. Ruth stared at the fabric of the Victorian couch, counting the threads. She made it to seven when a strangled sob leaves her lips. Ruth grimaces, tears streaming from her eyes now. The feel of her father's hand unpleasantly burned on her skin still. She tucked a hand in between her legs and squeezed her thighs. Maybe she can rub away the horrid touch. No, there is no soothing it away. Another sob quakes within her lungs and sniffles. Why?
Ruth curls, bending herself to fit on the narrow couch. Her tears continue to fall. As she settled in a fetal position and hope for sleep to come, Ruth felt some water on her cheek. She gasps, snapping her eyes to the rotted ceiling. In the back of her mind, Ruth thought maybe Pennywise the Clown was watching from above, drooling. No, she is not that lucky. Even if he were, Pennywise wouldn't scare her. Probably not ever, Ruth is not afraid of the clown.
Ruth felt the drop again. She scans the ceiling, there's a leak. Another fell on her forehead, which Ruth groans. She hugged close, covering herself with an arm. Why?
She laid in silence. The only exception is rolling thunder that shook the house and the padding of light rain. Ruth didn't mind it, though. The ambiance of an approaching storm and the noises of the settling house can lull her to sleep. With a rumble was a small creak. Ruth paid no mind to the sound as it could be the wind blowing a door open since she felt a breeze. No, it was not the wind.
Pennywise slowly stalked out from the shadows, watching Ruth intently. His eyes glowed gold as he silently approached like a snake in the grass. He grinned wildly with glee at the sight of the unaware Ruth lying awake still. As he came closer, the sounds of weeping filled his ears. Pennywise stalls, listening to the sobs and watching the young girl violently shake. She moves. Her arms cover her head, shielding herself from the constant drip of rainwater leaking above. That's not the cause of her distress, though. He pressed forward, silkily sliding across the floor and hunkers low feet away from his prey. He sniffs the air. An unfamiliar scent rafts his nostrils. Pennywise doesn't smell fear, but a musky male's cologne lingering on the child's body. His features contort into confusion. He slowly stood to tower over the small and fragile girl. Pennywise then notices the red blotches on her arms and legs, along with a few bruises.
A roll of thunder rumbles and a flash of lightning illuminated the dark space. Pennywise caught a glimpse of the extent of the markings. Not only does Ruth have large red welts and bruises, adorning her exposed thighs are scratches. There is also a bite mark. Pennywise's chest constricts, his golden eyes snap at Ruth shielding herself.
In his mind, he can hear Ruth screaming, "Get away from me! No! Getaway! Get off me, get off!"
Pennywise blinks, his eyes glowing brighter. "No! Stop, please! Get off!"
A frown adorned his ancient lips, no longer grinning. Ruth's cry of pain echoed in his head, the male bit her. His eyes flick back to the bite mark on her thigh. It was an attempt to force themselves on the child. The sound of smacking and grunting from her punching and kicking at her attacker reverberated in his brain. Her feet slapped against floorboards and pavement, Ruth had escaped. Her feet confirmed it as they are swollen and bloodied. Ruth's footprint to the couch is a good indicator. Pennywise understood, she didn't have time to throw on shoes. Ruth had to leave the house.
He heard the male calling out, rushing after her. "Ruthie! You fucking little bitch! Get your scrawny ass back here, you fucking slut! Get back here!"
Ruth is quick to duck behind shrubs, running out of sight.
He then heard her desperate cries for help as the girl ran down the street. No one bothered to glance out their windows. Not his fault by any means. The girl already has a name about her being the bastard daughter of the town's whore. The emotional scars on her heart revealed that Ruth is continuously bullied by her peers, even the bunch that are wanting to be rid of him. The torment she goes through with her mother is another. The woman physically and emotionally abuses her child. She's even neglectful in feeding Ruth, letting her fend for herself. It's no wonder Ruth is petite and frail.
Ruth is unloved and alone in this world. No one cared. She has nowhere to go that feels safe. Except, it lies here where nightmares of his creation reside.
Within a blink, his eyes dimmed. Pennywise remained to watch Ruth, listening to her sobs and sniffles. When he first saw the child, he knew Ruth was a victim of child abuse. To discover the child is molested and sexually abused made his innards unpleasantly squirm. From the sounds of Ruth's light wails, she has been dealing with the mistreatment for a long time now. For some reason, Ruth's despair sickened him to the core.
Rainwater dripped on her again, Ruth curls tighter and shudders a sob.
"Why?" Ruth faintly mumbles.
Pennywise frowns, blinking. The gold in his eyes disappear, replaced with innocent bright blues. He can't find it in his evil heart to scare Ruth. IT could, if he genuinely wanted to, that is. He can end it instantly for her, so she wouldn't have to deal with the loneliness or the abuse anymore. She will be free. Except, he couldn't. Pennywise the Clown, the evil ancient dimensional being, could not find it in his heart to frighten poor Ruth. He decided to leave her be. The dark Neibolt house will be Ruth's haven. It will protect her from the world.
Another drop landed on her covered head, making her shiver. Pennywise glances at the ceiling. He uses his power to cover the hole, stopping the unforgiving drip. He leaves the couches side, away from Ruth to sleep. He squats far, watching the girl still with a disgusted frown.
Why?
He sat there in the dark, observing Ruth's chest slowly rising and falling. She would occasionally shake, either from shivering or a sob. Typically, a child wouldn't affect him like this. He's heard of sexually abused children, but to meet one and see the infliction upon them is another. Ruth's innocence is tarnished by a parent's sickness for her flesh. What's even more frustrating for Pennywise about the girl is her lack of fear. Children should be frightened by the nightmares they conjure from drivel nonsense such as films, specific phobias, and everyday objects or even animals. Ruth, however, is deprived of that primal instinct. The girl is fearless, and IT is powerless because of her. He can't scare the child, not when there is nothing left for Ruth to be afraid of anymore.
Even if he continued trying, his shape-shifting abilities would be quickly recognized. Pennywise has already used her father to induce fear, yet her wretched mother. He morphed as a gigantic bird eater spider once, which failed miserably. The knot on his bulbous noggin throbs occasionally. Pennywise even shifted as a freaking naked mole-rat! He may have startled her, but Ruth mostly shivered in disgust. She's not scared of them. They just make her skin crawl. The girl dared to refer him as a male's anatomy part only with teeth and scrawny legs.
Pennywise trembled in disgust at the thought.
Irritating child. I'm confident the damn turtle would console the girl's wretchedness from her soul. Why can't that enormous reptile crash land here and…
His thought trails when he hears a small voice. His ears perked and features scrunched from the tiny tone that sounded melodious. Pennywise noticed Ruth moving slightly, adjusting herself. From the darkness and rumble of thunder, her voice disturbs the silence again.
"Hello darkness my old friend, I've come to talk with you again." Ruth whispers.
Pennywise slowly blinks, his head cocked slightly.
"Because a vision softly creeping, Left its seeds while I was sleeping."
He stares, uncertain of what to think of these words that flowed from her lips. He hesitated at first, but Pennywise slowly returns to the couch, listening.
"And the vision that was planted in my brain," Ruth continued. Her tears beginning to cease.
What is she doing?
"Still remains, within the sound of silence."
Her voice is fluted yet haunting that its hypnotic. Whatever she is doing, it drew an intrigued Pennywise closer to Ruth's side. Never has a child made him curious.
"In restless dreams, I walked alone, narrow streets of cobblestone."
It dawned on Pennywise then, Ruth is singing.
She's singing a song he's familiar with. The lyrics seemed fitting as he interprets the message as the inability of people communicating on a more emotional level. Apparently, Ruth can't articulate her upbringings clearly. No one has given her the time or the opportunity to speak of them. The Losers, who have become a close niche, could have opened their arms to her. Except, Pennywise knows for a fact that they have shunned her. He's witnessed their alienation from her. Hypocrites.
Ruth desperately needs a friend during this dark downward spiral of hers. And no one is willing to lend an ear or a shoulder.
"Nath the halo of a street lamp," her voice begun to slow, growing tired.
His frown deepens. Pennywise realized now Ruth is singing herself to sleep. How many times have you sung yourself to sleep, kid?
"I turned my collar to the cold," she yawns lightly. "And damp. When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light, that split the night."
Ruth yawns again, sighing shortly after. She curls deeper into the uncomfortable couch, hugging herself for some warmth.
"And touched the sound," Ruth's hypnotic voice trails off, finally falling asleep with a light sigh.
"Of silence," Pennywise finished for her.
Why would he, Pennywise hasn't a clue. He sat with his back to her, an oddly familiar pang grew in his stomach and weighed on his massive shoulders now. Pennywise even felt a long-forgotten emotion he hasn't felt in eons. He stares at the wall absently, distressed. He lowly growls, silently standing to his feet. With a frustrated glance over his shoulder at Ruth, the tall being leaves her side again. His lumbering form storms in the shadows, disappearing.
Irritating child!
A gray morning dawned when Ruth awoke. Her eyes open to see the same muted fabric. Despite the unusually good nights' sleep, Ruth remained alarmed of her surroundings. She remembers coming to the Neibolt house and falling asleep here. Ruth even recalls singing to herself for the umpteenth time. She has been doing it a lot lately. Especially after her encounters with Jonathan. She uncurls herself with a stretch which Ruth finally noticed something encased her in warmth.
Ruth sniffs, smelling must and earth. A combination that is neither horrid or pleasant. She glances down at herself to find a dirty blanket on her. Thankfully there is no dried bodily fluids or blood on it. Ruth then scans her eyes in the light grayness, finding that everything looked the same still and was no other body near her. The clown is nowhere to be seen, which is disappointing. With a frown, she heaves a sigh from her lungs then quickly stood.
The last thing Ruth expected was stepping on a sturdy body which growled unpleasantly. Startled, Ruth screams and falls back on the couch. It takes a tumble from impact, the added hard shove throws her to the dusted floor. She lands with a grunt. Ruth glances to her right to figure what she had stepped on, only to find Pennywise lunging for her. She moves to avoid him, except he is still able to grab her arm. He snarls, exposing rows of teeth that made Ruth gap. Despite the bubbling fear, Ruth maneuvers to kick a foot square onto his open maw. She kicks him hard, snapping his jaw shut and forced him backward with a release of her arm. His tall frame falls straight back and crashes onto the overturned couch.
Pennywise's legs stick straight in the air, his enormous shoes creating a beacon of his stunned self. She couldn't see it, but Pennywise laid with his long limbs outstretched to the side. His supposed frightening features have softened and eyes wide. He can't comprehend what transpired. All Pennywise knows is that his large pompom's at his toes are in his line of sight. He laid there, staring at the obnoxious accessories and rotted ceiling.
The silence in the room is awkward and tense. Neither Ruth or the clown uttered a sound. That is until Pennywise disturbed it with one word. "Ow."
Ruth, on the other hand, stared angrily at first. Him scaring her off is getting on Ruth's last nerves. After a moment calming down from the fright, she took in the scene in front of her. The sight of Pennywise's long legs sticking straight in the air made Ruth press her lips. Even the added "ow" made her silently snicker. A small slip of a giggle leaves her lips. She slaps a hand over her mouth, shuddering violently.
Pennywise must have heard her small squeak since his feet twitched. There was even a menacing growl. Shit, he heard me!
She knew what will happen if he caught her laughing at him. Ruth stood quickly to escape, only to cry out and fall on her ass. She sharply hisses, pulling her feet close to inspect them. The bottoms of her feet have small lacerations from running on pavement barefoot. They're swollen still as well.
Ruth groans, leaning her head against the wall. "Fuck," she groans.
She heavily sighs and closed her eyes, waiting for the stinging to subside. "I guess, that's what I get for laughing at you."
When Pennywise didn't say anything in return, Ruth glances at the couch. His feet are no longer in sight, except he is on the other side of the furniture. He's dangerously glaring at her, pouting like a child. She searches his angered gaze on her, thinking. After a moment, Ruth disturbs the tension.
"What exactly are you?"
He doesn't answer, only glares.
Instead of sitting in silence, Ruth presses further.
"I assume you're a shape-shifter of the sort. It would explain your many forms. So what are you? An extraterrestrial being or something of that nature?"
Pennywise remained quiet. He's not in the mood to be bombarded with questions about his existence. Instead, he slowly shrinks in the dark recesses of the house. Leaving Ruth in constant wonder.
She eyed the spot where he disappeared, a small smile forming. Ruth put the pieces together. The dingy blanket, the leaky roof fixed and his substantially large body near the couch. Pennywise stayed close to her last night.
"Maybe you're not so bad after all," Ruth whispered to herself. Small steps, Ruth. Small steps.
Ruth has to wonder now. How did it all come boiling down to this? At what point did she feel the safest here at 29 Neibolt?