A/N: Hey, everyone! I hope you are all having a great week so far and Happy Halloween! The Halloween Chapter is here! Some scares are mild, while others are a tinge more intense. You'll know when it comes to it. I've gone back and fixed a couple of scenes, so hopefully, you all will enjoy the update. :)
Put on some creepy tones if you wish and enjoy the read guys.
It's particularly chilly this evening, especially for October. It's already dark, way past curfew, and eerie in this corner of Derry. The Neibolt House loomed like a shadowy mass against the navy black sky. The moon is full and slightly hidden by equally dark clouds. Some street lamps are lit but not enough to illuminate their way. There is even a faint fog hanging low on the ground.
Six souls wondered timidly towards the dark house. Each wearing Halloween costumes to fit the festive ghoulish night.
There is Bill dressed as Beetlejuice and wearing a brave face underneath his worn-off makeup. To his right is Beverly, who wore a simple outfit consisted of cat ears, tail, and wearing all black. She painted the tip of her nose pink and drew on whiskers. Beside her is Ben as a cowboy, well Sheriff Hanscom. He has his brown cowboy hat, red bandana around his neck, chaps, and clunky boots with spurs. Ben has his completely fake water gun at his hip. Then you have Eddie. His costume fits his germophobic personality, a doctor. He's wearing the generic green scrub, a white coat with a make-shift badge saying Dr. K, and latex gloves. Eddie even wore a headlight.
To the left of Bill is Richie. Mr. Comedy Relief went as The Joker, with glasses. He looked dashing in the purple jacket and orange button-down shirt and wore a bowtie slash tie, which is a little dorky on him, even the checkered trousers. Of course, he wore goofy shoes to boot. Next to him is Mike. He dressed as a Ghostbuster, who looked ready to knock out a clown's teeth out. He held onto the makeshift ghost-sucking gun tightly, fully prepared. Stanley, on the other hand, opted out on their late-night excursion. They were told that was his first only time going to the Neibolt House. Stan will not return there under any circumstances.
Upon approaching the fence, the six observed their surroundings for any signs of movement. The last time the group was here is when Beverly drove an iron fence post through Pennywise's head and jaw. That encounter scared the crap out of them, Richie especially. It was his first time meeting the clown. Well, he did see him coming out of the projector with a gnarly smile, which freaked him out. Coming here and getting trapped in a room full of clown dolls scared him. Just thinking about clowns, in general, made Richie shiver.
Stop thinking about clowns, Richie repeated to himself.
Richie stopped to breath. He needs to calm down as Richie knew the demon clown can read the minds of scared little kids. With a hard breath, Richie got himself to relax. He then looks across the yard to stare at the tops of tall, dark grass, slowly breathing. He waited for anything to come bounding out but saw nothing. Richie, however, heard muffled noises like scratches and footsteps. He doesn't see anyone. Maybe, it's an animal? A low yowl fills his ears.
Oh god, oh shit, oh fuck, Richie rambled in his head.
He stares at the grass, seeing the blades sway. His breath labored, and eyes grew the size of dollars behind his glasses. Whatever is in the yard is heading straight for him. Richie froze as he continued to watch the blades of grass move much more quickly.
Oh, fuck!
Another low yowl sound, a screech follows, then something charges out at his feet. Richie screamed, whirling in his spot and fell on his ass. A loud meow runs past his ear and down the street. From the corner of his eye, Richie saw a black cat. It sprints down the road, crying and howling. It stopped suddenly and looked back at him. Its large eyes glowed if it were the demon clown in disguise. It hunkered, heckles high, and tail puffed like a raccoon. Richie can hear it growling, spitting, and hissing at nothing before tearing off again.
Sighing heavily in relief, yet mortified that he got scared by a cat, Richie felt wetness. At first, Richie thought he peed himself. Yeah, that would be even more embarrassing if it were. No, when he fell back, Richie toppled in a puddle. It rained earlier today, and the hole near the curb is filled with rainwater.
"Argh, damnit," Richie groaned.
"You okay, Richie?" Beverly asked as she approached to help him up.
"Yeah, I'm fine. The Joker got bested by a damn cat," Richie replies while straightening the tie.
"At least it wasn't Pennywise."
"Shh! Don't say his name," Eddie whispered harshly from behind them.
Both Richie and Bev glared at him, suppressing their amused smirks.
"Dude, he's nothing like the guy," Richie counters, grinning. "Here, I'll prove it to you."
"Stop it, Richie! I'm already freaking out," Eddie whined.
Ignoring Eddie's protest, Richie proceeds to scream, "Pennywise, Pennywise, Pennywise!"
Ben and Bill stood near the gate, waiting intently. They looked about the yard, seeing nothing. Mike, who didn't give a damn, prepared himself. Eddie fidgeted, glancing in every direction for the clown to come bounding out like a jack-in-a-box. Beverly remained to stand close to Richie, hugging his arm. After a long, intense moment, Pennywise didn't show.
"See! He's nothing like…" Richie is cut short when there was a yell.
Turning to the yard beside him, Pennywise hurled himself at Richie and Beverly with arms outstretched. They screamed and fell backward into the street, hugging each other close. The two sat there like this, thinking that the clown was about to devour them. Except, nothing happened. Slowly they glanced over at the fence. Pennywise is gone, but his cackle filled the air.
"Aw, did I scare the little kitty cat?" Pennywise taunts.
Ben, who rightfully felt a pang in his chest at the sight of Richie and Beverly hugging, fumed. He turns his attention to the house, scowling and puffs of his chest. Sheriff Hanscom marched towards the front porch with a brave face.
"Ben, wait up!"
Mike rushed forwards first with Bill behind him. Eddie reluctantly followed while picking at his gloved hand. Richie on the tail end to keep anything from happening to Beverly as she ventured ahead of him.
Upon entering, Ben stares into the darkened house. He doesn't see the clown, but Pennywise can hear them. They are on his turf and is obviously protecting it tonight.
"Where are you, asshole?" He bellows with an angry scowl.
The group soon piled behind him, staying close. Looking around still, they all stood in the foyer. Despite Ben calling out to the clown, the house is eerily quiet and very much dark. The cobwebs that hung loosely in corners of each room lightly swayed from an unknown breeze, and the shadows seemed to shift. After a moment staying put, the six slowly inched forward.
From behind, the main entrance door eased closed. It made a slight creak, alerting the bunch. The kids stiffened, waiting for someone to come charging. When nothing did, the group continued on. The door soon closed with a loud bang. Startled, they all jumped while one made a girly shrill.
The boys sans Eddie, who is having a nervous fit and darting his eyes every which way, looked at Beverly.
"That was not me," she defends quickly.
"You screamed, and you know it, Kitty," Richie countered.
Beverly purses her lips, glaring at him.
"It wasn't her," Eddie guiltily admits, daring not to look at his friends.
They stared at him briefly, choosing not to comment. Instead, the lot continued forward. Eddie watched them for a moment, really not wanting to explore further. The place is giving him the creeps. Eddie has detoured here quite a bit and always felt spooked by the house. He's been inside it once and wanted to keep it that way. Now, Eddie is back inside and in the dark no less. He wants to leave.
He sighs deeply, glancing over his shoulder towards the door. It's nothing but a black rectangle. Eddie started forwards to catch up with the others but stops. He heard what sounded like a low hiss. Eddie's breath caught in his throat, freezing in his spot.
Oh, please, no, Eddie thought.
He heard the low hiss again but couldn't see where it was coming from. Eddie lightly snapped the latex, hoping this would calm him. Although he knew it is a futile attempt. The hiss sounds again only louder and closer. He remained to look for the reptile. It occurred to him then that Eddie shouldn't be looking for it. In fact, he should be following after his friends.
"Hey guys, wait…" Eddie whispered harshly then started forwards.
He took one step, the hiss right on top of him now. Glancing up, Eddie caught sight of a giant and very much real looking snake. An anaconda hovered above Eddie, mouth wide and reared back. Eddie stared in stunned horror at the reptile before screaming his signature girly shriek. He clambered backward just as the anaconda lurched at him, attempting to take a bite out of Eddie.
Eddie makes a run for it but trips under his shoelaces. He lands with a puff, the snake soaring over him and blocked the door. It hisses again, aiming at Eddie's gloved hand. With yet another girly shrill, Eddie crawls away sideways like a crab on steroids. Upon standing, Eddie is greeted with more snakes, each a different species, and ready to strike. With a light groan, blood rushed to his head and collapses onto the floor in a heap.
The smaller snakes slowly descend towards the ceiling as the anaconda shrunk into the shadows.
"Eddie!"
The group rushed over to Eddie's fainted form. Richie fanned his boy-crush with a hand, hoping it will wake him. When that didn't help, he just slaps him.
This worked. Eddie snaps his eyes open and gaps in pain.
"OW! What the hell was that for?"
"To get you to wake up, princess. It matches with that shrill girly scream of yours."
"Shut up," Eddie growls, pouting.
Wanting to add insult to injury, Richie remembered what Ruth did to Eddie. He saw from the corner of his eye a fake rubber snake. How it got there? He doesn't have a clue, but it gave him an opportunity. Richie hid his wild grin and reached for it. The second it touched his hand, Richie lightly tossed the toy onto Eddie's chest.
Eddie looks down and shrieks. He bats at his chest then bolts up from the floor, whining.
Richie laughs hysterically while the others glowered at him. Even though they did want to laugh.
Pennywise cackles with Richie.
"Don't you laugh at me, you jerk!" Eddie screeched at Pennywise.
He proceeded to laugh despite Eddie's request.
"And you! What the fuck Richie? Why did you have to go and do that, huh?"
Richie continues to laugh, "Oh, my god," he wheezes. "The look on your face was priceless."
"Shut up!"
Someone clears their throat.
"Now is not the time to mess around, Richie," Bill struggled to say with strain and an amused smirk.
"Oh, come on now, I'm the freaking Joker! I have to be funny."
"I don't care if you're the Joker or freaking Jack Nicolson! Stop clowning…" Ben trails off from a sound.
A female childishly giggles.
They stiffened at the eerie, unfamiliar voice.
The sound of quickening footsteps followed.
"Do you want to play a game with me?" The unseen girl questions.
The group looks around for the young girl, growing frightened.
"No," Beverly boldly answers firmly.
"Aw, you're no fun, Beaver-ly," the girl pouts.
Beverly, who stood by Richie, gets yanked from behind. She screams loudly and crashes harshly on the floor. Beverly then is dragged towards nothingness. She scrambles in trying to grab at the floorboards while attempting to regain composure.
This isn't real, she repeats to herself with a whimper.
"It's real, Beverly," the girl's voice sounds from behind her.
Beverly glances over her shoulder, only to scream. Directly behind her is a giant spider web, accompanying it is an equally gigantic spider. It suddenly bursts with a muffled boom, exploding into tiny arachnids. They scurried across the floor and up Beverly's arms. She screams, swiping the spiders away. They continued to creep up her legs, arms, and body, covering every inch of her. Some even got into her hair! Beverly continued to scream and brush them off.
The others rushed to Beverly's side, helping her up. Beverly whimpers, trembling uncontrollably. Her cat ears slipped down her head, which freaked her out. Frightened still, Beverly frantically shakes at her head to get whatever is there out. The accessory drops to the floor with a light plop.
"It's okay, nothing is there, Bev. Nothings there," Richie's voice sounds.
She stopped and opened her eyes. Richie stood in front of Beverly with his hands, gripping her shoulders. Beverly suddenly collapsed into him, hugging Richie tightly and cried.
Stunned, Richie holds his arms out for a moment. When he realized the heat and weight from Beverly is comforting, Richie returns the embrace awkwardly.
"Um, it's okay," he reassures with a frown and pats her back.
Ben glared at the two, his fingers itching to grab his water gun and start squirting at Richie.
After a second of intense silence, Eddie finally got the courage to speak.
"Will someone please remind me what we are doing here? I didn't want to get the piss scared out of me by a fucking anaconda!"
"You know why you came," a voice suddenly answered.
"Who, who said that?" Richie questions.
No answer.
It's calm for now, but they are all on edge. The group looked around for any surprises but saw none.
However, the cackle of Pennywise echoes in the house.
Unnerved still, they huddled close.
"For crying out loud, just leave us alone, you sum bitch!" Mike yells out.
Pennywise stops laughing, "Alone?"
Neither of them answered back, afraid he will do something far worse than scaring them.
Mike stood at the ready, gripping his fake weapon. With his back to the opening, a figure stood behind him. They slowly glided across the floor and down the hall.
"Mike," the figure calls for him.
He whirls around, hoping to see someone there. Mike could see someone, but he's not sure who it is. He turns to the others, hoping that they saw them, too. Except, he's the only one there. Mike is all alone.
"Mike."
Mike turns, his eyes landing on someone who appears to be Ruth. She stood in the doorway, watching him somberly. Ruth glowed from the moon shining through a window behind her. At first, Mike thought he was staring at an angel. She seemed so pale and ghostly. He gulps tightly, tears running down his cheeks at the sight of her. Mike failed to notice her feet gradually faded into the dark wood.
"Ruth," he calls to her, inching forwards.
She turns away, gently gliding into a room as if to draw him away from the others.
Mike does just that. He strolled at first before it turned into a sprint.
"Ruth!"
He enters the room she went, blinking slowly. It is empty. With a shuddering sigh, Mike looks around the room. That's when he smelt something off. It was the smell of burnt flesh, char, and smoke. In a corner behind him, the figure he saw earlier stood eerily. They lumbered forward, pieces of charred skin falling with each step.
"Mike," the figure rasped.
Mike grew rigid, his breath labored and trembling. He heard the shuffling of feet, even the light plops that followed. He dared himself not to look but thought the better of it. Mike glances over his shoulder. He shouts and balks. Lumbering after him is a severely burnt girl. Their hair blackened and melted to their skull. Her clothes are burned beyond recognition, but Mike can tell it's Ruth. They jerkily glance at him, their eyes gone. All that is left is the empty sockets.
He tried to scream, but it came out as a strangled, muffled breath. The charred body that is supposedly Ruth rushed at him with a yell. Mike finally found his voice to scream, raising his fake weapon above his head. He brings it down to crack at their skull. Instead, the figure disintegrates upon impact. Mike backs away quickly, eyeing the spot of which the person stood. To his surprise, though, they came after him again. This time, they are in the form of a ghostly figure made of black smoke with glowing yellow eyes.
Mike screams, rushing down the hall.
"Guys!" He calls out, trying to outrun the smoke spirit.
It came after him still, chasing Mike down the hall that seemed longer than before.
"Bill! Ben! Beverly! Someone help!"
Mike sprints, panting like a dog in the middle of summer. When he came to the opening of which his friends stood, someone else emerged. It is Ruth, but she gripped a weapon. She has this evil yet playful grin on her face as she rose what Mike thought to be a real ax above her head and brought it down.
He again screams, thrashing his arms up to block the hit. Instead, someone grabbed him. Mike fights, struggling to get away.
"No! Stop, please, stop! Ruth, stop! Don't hurt me! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"
"MIKE!" Someone yells then gives him a hard slap to the face, snapping his head to the side.
Mike snapped out of it then. Terrified, he moves away. Mike frantically looks from Eddie, Bill, Ben, and Beverly. They eyed him cautiously, hands up protectively.
"What, what the hell just happened? Where the fuck did you guys go?"
"We didn't go anywhere, you just walked off! What the hell happened to you, man?" Eddie inquired, watching Mike warily.
"I, I thought, I thought I saw Ruth! She, she was, she was here, damnit!"
"Mike, calm down," Beverly urged, stepping forward. "Rush is not here."
"Bullshit! I saw her! She, she," Mike stuttered, weeping still.
"She's not here," Beverly insisted.
Mike stood in his spot, terrified still. He wanted to speak but couldn't find the words.
"That's why we're here, Mike. We came to see if she was."
"Well, the letter she sent wanting us to come here is the reason," Ben chimes.
"Which I don't understand why we followed her instruction," Eddie started, fidgeting. "Since the moment we came here, that fucking clown has been doing nothing but scaring the crap out of us!"
"I haven't gotten scared yet," Ben states matter-of-factly.
Eddie glowers, "Well, lucky you! I scared by a fucking anaconda for Christ's sake!"
"I would be scared too if I actually saw it! Richie got scared by a stupid cat!"
"Hey," Richie protested with a pout.
"Did you not see the large fucking reptile dropping from the ceiling?"
"No! We turned around to see you freaking out over nothing and going all crabby."
Eddie stalls, staring in shock. "You saw nothing?"
"Seriously, I saw nothing."
He goes to say something, only to be interrupted.
"Look," Bill stuttered. "Let's just go. Ruth is not here."
Mike stares in defeat yet frightened still. "Fine, but I'm coming back here in the morning."
Agreeing, the group started for the door.
"Bill," a voice called to him.
He whirls around, thinking it was Pennywise disguised as Georgie. No, not Georgie. Down the hall is Ruth. She stares at him with an unusual yet creepy grin.
The others turned as well, relieved yet stunned to see Ruth here.
"Ruth," Mike mumbled then rushed forward.
Her creepy grin widens then jerkily crossed the hall into a room.
Mike didn't notice the way she moved, but the others did.
"Mike, stop! That's not her!" Beverly yelled, running after him.
Bill quickly followed behind the two while Eddie and Richie stayed behind and huddled close. Ben also stayed, his fingers twitching to grab his water gun.
Mike was close to the room of which Ruth went, only to grind to a halt. He heard something crawling from inside, and it sounds large. There is even a low growl. Mike watched the corner, gripping his painted wood weapon. Once Bill and Beverly came to his side, they too heard the menacing noise. Frightened, they eyed the door themselves and breathes labored.
For an intense moment, nothing happened. The sounds even stopped.
They sighed in relief.
That brief calm vanished in an instant. An enormous gray hand sprung out and dug its foot-long claws into the wall with a crash.
The three kids yell, backing away with eyes wide.
A long boney arm stretches, extending to the opposite wall. With a demonic groan, something emerged from within the room. It slowly crawled, grunting, and growling with each step it took. Upon drawing its head into the open, the children screamed and backed away.
Ben yanked his water gun out, thinking about taking a shot but doesn't. He stares, mouth gaping, and breathing rapidly.
It roars loudly like a muffled tyrannosaurus. It's throat clicking and trilling.
Eddie screams petrified as the hideous creature eased itself out of the bedroom. It approached the frightened children on long slender arms.
"What the hell is that? What the fuck is that?" Richie screamed, clinging and shaking Eddie's arm.
Bill, Beverly, and Mike backed away, gaping and hugged each other. They stood with the other three in which Ben had dropped his water gun with a loud clatter. He won't be using it on this thing.
They watched in absolute horror as a gigantic creature dominates the hall. Its long spindly limbs stretched out. It made another low growl, hunkering and dragging its hind legs behind it. Whatever this thing is, it is gaunt to the point of emaciation. Its depleted skin pulled tightly over its bones with ribs exposed and complexion ash-gray like death. The creature has the head of an elongated deer skull, and antlers flared behind it like a bare tree in winter, and just barely grazed the ceiling. The thing smelled eerily of decay and decomposition, of death. Its empty sockets stared at the six souls, lowly growling and snorting. The creature's lower jaw hinged open and roared. Its breath reeked of a thousand corpses left out in the summer heat.
Petrified, the kids couldn't scream. Their eyes had grown the size of saucers as it slowly crept towards them. Its hollow sockets glanced from each child, determining who it should pounce on first. The creature stares at Ben. If it could smile, it would. The boy reeks of fear.
Its growls then rushed at them.
They scream, making a mad dash for the door. Mike is the only one to stop and fling his weapon at the creature. He watched as it soared past the creature's head.
Stupid move, Mike yelled at himself.
He lagged behind his friends, yelling as the creature gained ground. Mike thought it was about to take a bite out of him from being so close. Instead, it clears over him and the others. It crashes in front of them, blocking the door with a roar. Everyone skidded to a halt, ducking low as it swiped at them.
"Up! Go up!" Bill yells without stuttering.
He rushes up the steps, the others following closely behind him. They scrambled, each tumbling forward from dodging another swing. Eddie makes a shrill scream as it clawed its way after them with a deafening roaring screech. Its breath wafted into his nostrils that made Eddie gag. He whimpers, falling behind as the others rushed past him.
"Guys, wait!" Eddie screams.
He froze in his spot as the creature lumbered over him and unhinged its jaw. Eddie doesn't look, he just tries to clamber up the steps while crying.
"Eddie!" Richie yells frantically.
Eddie doesn't go far when an arm smashes in front of him, blocking his path. Whimpering, he looks over his shoulder. The creature towered over him, watching Eddie gleefully. It makes a low growl, then a long slimy yellow tongue slid out from its mouth. The thing licks at Eddie's face, tasting his delicious fear. Its tongue then wrapped around Eddie's waist and hoisted him off the steps.
He thrashes, kicking, and screaming.
"Eddie!" Richie rushed forward.
The creature thrusts a hand and hits Richie in the stomach. It throws him back up the stairs, colliding into the others. The Wendigo lumbers after them with Eddie thrashing still.
"LET GO OF ME! LET ME GO!" He screams.
Eddie punches and kicks at the beast, only to be deemed futile. His efforts to escape don't faze the creature. It stampedes after the frightened children, roaring.
"RUN!" Eddie hollers.
"GO, go now!" Bill instructs, forcing Richie to follow.
Eddie watches in horror and sadness as his friends retreat upon his request.
The group ran towards one of the open rooms, the creature right behind. Bill and Mike were quick to slam the door in front of the thing. Behind the wood, it roars, along with Eddie's scream. They know the beast could come through, but it never did. Instead, whatever it is, retreats for now with its prey in tow, who became silent.
They stared at the rotted paneling, gasping for breath. Richie cried as he fell onto the floor and held his head low. The others wept with him, saddened at Eddie's capture. No one said a word for a long moment. The room is mostly quiet sans the occasional light sobs.
Bill took a moment to look around. The walls are bare, the floor dirty, and a bunch of rubbish scattered about. His eyes scanned the dark corners. He noticed a silhouette leaning against one of the walls but couldn't tell what it was. Bill watched it from where he stood, waiting for it to move. It never did.
After another intense moment, Richie broke the silence.
"I should have got to him sooner," Richie whispers with strain.
Bill goes to argue when someone else spoke up. Not one of them.
"It's not your fault," a small voice replies guiltily.
Startled, the group whirl around to search who had spoken.
"Who, who's there?" Bill struggled, eyeing the silhouette.
They sigh then groan uncomfortably.
Horror stricken and guilty still, Richie looks in the direction of the voice. His eyes land on the mass that Bill sees. Unsure of what he is seeing, Richie tearily squints.
"How is it not my fault?"
"Richie, shut up," Beverly shushed him.
There is a light gasp of recognition. "Gray Water?"
"Wait, BK?"
"Shut up," Ben urged. "It's not her."
"I think it really is Ruth," Mike joined.
"How do we know for sure?"
Pursing his lips, Mike glances at the black mass. "What are we dressed up as?"
"Huh?" Ruth questioned.
"Our costumes, what are we?" Beverly questioned for Bill.
"How the hell would I know? I can't see shit."
They equally can't see. The room is dark but can make out outlines and shapes. Bill searched for something along the ground for a light source but saw none. He heard shuffling coming from the corner were Ruth supposedly sat. She groans painfully, cursing under her breath.
"Fuck," she groaned. "I'm sorry about Eddie."
"Yeah, sure you are," Beverly bit sarcastically.
"I really am," she counters, raggedly breathing. "It got me, too."
"What did?"
A faint roar erupts in the house, causing the children to huddle close in fright. Ruth cowered in the corner, mumbling incoherently.
Richie, along with Mike, noticed. It may be dark in here, but their eyes adjusted to the shadows. They can see Ruth curled tight and hands clasped in front of her as if she were praying.
"Ruth," Mike called to her.
"Keep it away from me," she mumbles, trembling.
"What, what the hell is that thing?" Ben asked.
Ruth wheezes, "The Wendigo."
"The what?"
She goes to repeat herself when the Wendigo roars loudly from outside the room. Ruth screams and cowers further in the corner, shielding her head.
"Our Father in heaven," Ruth began to pray out loud, crying.
The group watched the terrified Ruth in horror. They've never seen her afraid. She told them once before that Ruth doesn't get scared of anything. Except, this thing, the Wendigo, frightened her to the core. They hesitantly approached Ruth, considering about comforting her. They didn't close enough to touch her when there was another roar followed by clicking and trills.
Ruth shudders violently, raggedly breathing, and whimpers. The others stare at her silhouette, waiting for it to come out of somewhere. They, too, breathed rapidly and staring wide-eyed around the room.
There was a light from behind Ruth. It soars past her right shoulder then clatters onto the floor with a loud thud. She jumps from the sound. Eddie's headlight illuminated the wall behind the group, their shadows extending to the ceiling like long fingers. Bill eyes the object for a moment then slowly stoops to take it into his hands.
He immediately shines the light on Ruth, discovering she is in terrible condition. She is frail, covered in a slimy substance, and splotched in blood. Ruth has lacerations covering her arms and deep slash marks running across her torso. He can even see holes from where the Wendigo grabbed her. Its long claws punctured her left lung, which is causing her to wheeze. Bill then took one good look at her face. Ruth is, indeed, terrified. Ruth's lip quivered as it bleeds at the corners, her cheeks wet from tears, and hair conformed to her skull from filthy slime. She is sheet white, and eyes clouded.
"Ruth," Mike utters lightly.
He stared at Ruth in relief but felt a sickening twist in his stomach. Something is terribly off here. The atmosphere in the room changed when Ruth locked her watery gaze on him. She grimaces deeply, trembling from an unbearable cold settling around them.
"Mike, I'm…" Ruth stopped when she heard a low growl, along with a snort.
She froze, daring not to look over her shoulder.
Mike and the others stared helplessly as the Wendigo's skull slowly withdrew from within a closet that was behind her. They see her violently shake and breath deeply.
"It's behind me, isn't it?" She whispered.
They couldn't answer.
The Wendigo makes a satisfying screech in which Ruth rightfully screams then crawls into a run. Like a frog, the creature's slimy tongue darts and wraps at her mid-section. She cries out from tripping and crashes to the floor.
"RUTH!" Mike screams and rushes forward.
The beastly creature yanks Ruth back to drag her into the closet of which it emerged. Thinking quickly, Ruth grabs at the doorframe. Ruth's resistance caused the Wendigo to clamp its jaw on her, causing Ruth to scream in pain.
"RUTH!" Richie cries out.
Mike, along with Richie, baseball slid to Ruth's side and grabbed at her arms. They couldn't get a good grip on her as she is covered in slime. It felt like petroleum jelly and Vaseline is smeared all over her.
"Ruth, it's okay! I got you, I got you!" Mike reassures.
She cries as Mike tried to pull Ruth away from the Wendigo, who glares emptily at the boy. Richie blubbers, as well, trying to get a good grip to pull her away.
"I got you, Ruth! I'm not letting go!" Richie hollers, yanking at her.
Ruth can only whimper and writhe in pain as the creature resisted the boys' futile attempts to save her. They can hear clothing ripping and felt blood spill onto the floor with a sickening splatter. She looks at them with tears streaming, which are also bloodshot.
"Run," she gurgles.
"No! No, Ruth, please!" Mike pleads, crying now.
Ruth groans unpleasantly, slipping from their hands.
"Run," Ruth faintly instructs.
With a mighty yank, the Wendigo pulls Ruth away from Richie and Mike in which they fell to the floor.
She makes an ear-piercing, blood-curling scream then vanishes into the dark in a blinding flash.
"RUTH!"
Bill, Ben, and Beverly stare with mouths gaping and breathing raggedly from watching. Tears fell from Ben's eyes now, horrified and saddened to see Ruth get eaten. Mike and Richie bawled, hunkering in on themselves. Beverly can see their hands covered in the slippery slim, grieved at their attempt to save Ruth. They were wrong. Ruth was here, but it appears the group was summoned here by someone else. They figure it has something to do with Pennywise.
Bill opens his mouth to speak, but nothing could come out. When he makes another attempt, they hear an ungodly roar erupt from where Ruth was dragged. Bill sees something start to come through. It's the Wendigo coming back for more.
"RUN!" Bill screams then rushed to the door.
The others quickly follow as the Wendigo lurched forward and made a grab for Mike. He dodges the hand, tumbling forward with a grunt. Mike immediately returns to his feet, following after Richie, who is still crying from watching Ruth get taken.
The creature runs after them, roaring loudly.
The kids rushed down the steps, all of them crying now. Beverly trips going down, but Ben is quick to catch her. He helps her descend the stairs, glancing over his shoulder at the Wendigo following closely behind. Ben whimpers, beyond scared now.
This is not how Halloween should be, Ben screams in his head.
Just as the kids landed on the main floor, they rushed for the door. The group wasn't a foot away when the Wendigo crashes down behind them, roaring and snarling. Instead of screaming bloody murder, they fell out of the house and onto the porch. It reached for them, snagging Bill from behind. He screams and thrashes, struggling to run away.
"No, help!"
"Let go of him!" Beverly shrieks and kicks at the Wendigo's wrist.
She hears its wrist snap, which screeches like a parrot in pain. It lets go of Bill then snapped its hand back inside the home. The Wendigo watched as the bunch hurdled forwards, rushing down the steps.
It roars loudly in defeat then vanishes inside the darkened house of Neibolt.
The group stood at the steps for a moment, waiting for it to reappear. The Wendigo never did.
Satisfied they are not being followed, the group ran towards the gate. As they got close, the five saw something new in the yard. Scared out of their minds still, they approached. It's a signpost. Bill, who held onto Eddie's headlamp, beamed the light on the board.
On it, written in what appears to be blood or paint:
"HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Thanks for the entertainment.
Come back soon."
There was even a smiley face below it for added effect.
"What the fuck is this shit? Thanks for the entertainment, come back soon. You have a really sick sense of humor if you just wanted to scare us, you fucking asshole!" Richie screamed.
Pennywise cackles from somewhere, causing the five to jump and huddle close.
"Oh, lighten up. It was all in good fun," Pennywise amused.
"Good fun? How was all of that shit good fun, huh?"
Pennywise laughs some more, not even caring if the kids hate him.
"You're a sick, twisted fucking clown! You ate Eddie!"
The laugh stops suddenly, "I did not! He's perfectly fine!"
"Bullshit! You even ate…"
Richie doesn't finish when he sees Eddie come out from the house.
He nonchalantly descends the steps, humming and carrying a pumpkin basket full of Halloween candy. Eddie is eating a candy bar, grinning happily. When he stepped foot on the ground, Eddie saw his friends staring at him oddly.
"Oh, hey, guys! Look what I got," Eddie beams, motioning at the plastic pumpkin basket.
"What the hell? Eddie! I thought, I thought…"
"You thought I was what, dead? Pfft, no, not all! I just ended up in the basement. The creepy evil clown just put me in a cage. I assume this candy was left for me."
"You're, you're actually eating the candy he gave you?"
"I was already freaking out!" Eddie quickly defends. "I ate them because it distracted me from the screams you guys were making upstairs. AND, he left a note."
Eddie rummaged through his pockets to fish out the piece of parchment.
"Huh?"
Eddie ignores Richie, unfolding the note.
"In the spirit of Halloween, I only wanted to scare you not eat. I already had my fill this evening. Joking, haha. Happy Halloween, kiddos. P.S. A good friend of mine got the candy. Enjoy! Why he would do that, I have no clue. But hey, who would turn down gifted candy?"
Awestruck, the group glanced at one another then at the house again. They hoped to see another figure like Ruth to come out of there unscathed. They waited a moment, impatiently waiting.
"What, what about Ruth? What about her? Where is she?" Mike boldly questioned.
There was silence from the clown for at least a moment.
"Who now?"
They grew rigid.
"Ruth! You know, the cute ginger-haired and fair-skinned girl. Where is she?"
Silence followed again for another moment.
They all waited for a response but gone none.
"HEY! Answer me, damnit! What about Ruth?" Mike hollered, growing fearful.
When Pennywise failed to answer, they immediately started to panic.
"Oh, come on! Please, tell me! Where is Ruth?"
Instead of silence, they hear light shuffling, not several feet away from them. Fear slowly webbed through their veins. There are whispers with the dragging sound.
"Dead and gone," the whispers reply faintly.
Bill, who remained to grip the headlight, slowly cast the light at the feet. There's not one, not even two, but several pairs of shuffling feet. He then hears the groans and moans.
"Bill, don't shine the light on them," Beverly whispered urgently.
He fails to comply. Bill drags the light to the torsos, finding one eerily familiar stumbling forwards. Bill makes out a shredded lilac blouse covered in blood and slime. His hand violently shakes and breath labors. He then looks upwards, casting the yellowish glow on their face. Bill makes a startled yell, backing up just as the others did. In front of the mass, is Ruth. She is decomposing and drying. Her eyes are no longer hazel but ghostly and dead. Ruth's decayed lips pull back in a sneer, growling loudly.
"No, Ruth," Mike whines, weeping.
Zombie Ruth lurches forward, reaching for one of them to snare. She managed to grab Ben by the collar, pulling him towards her. He yells, scrambling to get back. Ben grabs at her wrist, hoping to snap it off. Instead, Ruth leans to bite at his arm. He screams, stumbling.
"NO! No, let me go! Let me go, please! Help!" Ben whimpers, trying to escape.
The others came from behind and worked to get him out of Ruth's clutch. She refused to let go. Her long nails scrape along Ben and Richie's arm, making the two boys cry out. Ruth growls and snarls, snapping her yellowed, decayed teeth.
After a moment struggling, they managed to get Ben out of Ruth's death grip. She growls, lumbering after them. The group screams just as a blinding flash filled their eyes then sprint down the street. Eddie continued to cling to his gifted candy bucket, screaming his signature girly shrill.
"I HATE HALLOWEEN!"
Several feet behind, Dr. K, Joker Richie, stumbles and tumbles like a newborn giraffe then crashed onto the pavement with a grunt. He doesn't hesitate to get up, rushing away with a yell.
Zombie Ruth's growling slowly escalated into a laugh. She stops dragging her feet to stand and cackle. The several other zombie kids quickly morphed into the sadistic clown, who rightfully laughs with Ruth. His loud cackle dominates over Ruth's, who fell onto her knees, laughing.
"Oh…my…god! Did you see their faces?" Ruth wheezes between laughs, collapsing onto the ground.
"Twitchy Eddie even runs like a girl!" He guffaws.
"You did get a picture of them, right?"
Pennywise began to regain composure, his laughter turning into light giggles.
"Yep! Polaroids make instant memories," he chuckles, lightly fanning a picture.
"Oh, let me see, let me see!" Ruth squeals excitedly, jumping up from the ground to look.
The moment her eyes land on the photo, Ruth bursts into a fit of giggles.
"Excellent shot! Eddie looks hilarious. Nice tie there, Gray Water. I figured he would go as the Joker."
Pennywise scuffs with a wide grin in response before stuffing the photo away.
"I love Halloween. Can we scare Stanley now? Please, pretty please." He begs.
Ruth beams up at him, her eyes sparkling to life at his excitement.
"Yeah, we can. Let me wash this stuff off first, though. It's going to take me several showers to get this goop off. I think your teeth from when you were the Wendigo gauged into me, too. I would need to patch it up as well."
Ruth soon started back to the house while trying to comb her hair.
Pennywise snaps his pained gaze on her, frowning. "Did I hurt you?"
Ruth glances over her shoulder at him, then gently smiles, "Not terribly. I know you didn't mean it, though. So, don't worry about it, Pen."
"Let me see."
He stooped low, wanting to inspect the injury.
"It's okay, Pen, really."
Refusing to step away, he kept Ruth still then lifts the filthy top to expose her stomach. There it was, a bite mark from his molar is imprinted in her skin. It lightly bleeds, but it's not severe. His brows furrow when he noticed the pooch. Pennywise then gently touches her belly to tenderly brush the area. His hand soon retracts, recoiling. Pennywise's gold eyes glare down at Ruth, scowling deeply.
"What?" Ruth questions stunned at his sudden closeness.
"Nothing," he answers, then turns away, dropping his serious expression. "Come on now, let's get that fixed and go scare Loverboy."
Ruth stares at him for a moment, puckering her lips. "Loverboy? He's not my boyfriend yet, you know."
"I know that!"
She grins, "Oh, don't get your clown suit in a bunch, Penny. Can we eat the candy I got this evening from trick-or-treating? I'm psyched to finally have some chocolate."
"Pfft, you maybe but not me. After those cracker jacks you left, I had a freaking kernel stuck in my teeth for nearly a week."
Ruth chuckles lightly then rushed after him. When she was a foot away, Ruth leaps and lands on Pennywise's back. He rightfully grunts from the weight of her, yet automatically hooks his arms at Ruth's knees to keep her from falling. She clings onto his neck, beaming brightly.
"Sorry about that. Did you at least enjoy the treat?"
Pennywise sighs, pouting slightly. "I did," he admits, then trudged up the steps.
"I knew you would. So, that means you do eat sweets and not just frightened little children."
He just groans lightly, not even bothering in arguing.
After a brief silence, Ruth hummed and spoke softly near his ear. "Thanks, Pen. I had a lot of fun tonight."
He paused on the steps, glancing over his shoulder at her.
"It's not even over yet."
Ruth gently smiles, hugging his neck tighter, and lays her head on him.
"I know," she started, humming. "I want to thank you now before I forgot. So, thank you, Pen. This is the most fun I had in my life. I don't know what I would do without you."
Pennywise smiles fondly as Ruth pressed herself against his broad back.
"You'd be lost without me, Vivi," he replies.
Ruth's smile widens but doesn't say anything back. There's no need for a reply.
By the time Ruth washed up and ready for their next scare, it was quarter after eleven. Halloween is almost over. Pennywise suggested an alternative, shorter version of the fright for Stanley. Ruth wholeheartedly agreed. The frightening duo went to Stan's house and performed at his bedroom window. Ruth pulled off a tremendous make-up job of the creepy vampire Nosferatu in which Pennywise had her floating. When Stan heard tapping at his window and looked over to investigate, they got the result Ruth and Pennywise wanted and more. He shrieked so loud that the neighbor's dog barked. Stan had crawled and tumbled out of his bed with the sheets tangled at his feet. He kept falling onto the floor to get away while screaming bloody murder.
Of course, his parents heard him yelling and came in to check on him. What they weren't expecting was seeing the horrendously creepy vampire that was Ruth. They, too, had yelled out and scrambled out of the room where Stan trailed behind them. Both Ruth and Pennywise laughed hysterically. So hard that he lost his concentration. Ruth plummeted to the ground with a startled scream. Luckily, Pennywise caught her and held Ruth close. She clung onto him before the shock wore off and started laughing again with him following.
When they returned home, it was half-past the hour. After Ruth removed the paint and dressed in evening wear, she and Pennywise sat in front of the completely safe makeshift chimney slash fire pit. The room was nice and warm for them, well, Ruth, at least. Pennywise didn't care if he was cold. He told stories of his previous hunts while Ruth shared some horror, campfire tales. They both ate candy, of course, which Pennywise had to dig into his piranha-like teeth to fish out a gummy candy. It amused Ruth that he would get something stuck in there, but dared not to look into his bright mouth.
At five till midnight, Ruth was sound asleep at Pennywise's side. She exhausted herself from the scares Ruth performed earlier, the candy just added onto it. He eyed her as she sleeps against his shoulder, lightly snoring. With a roll of his eyes and a light groan, Pennywise carried his irritating companion to the mattress. He made sure not to wake her as Pennywise settled Ruth down and tucked her in as if it were normal for him. Pennywise sighs heavily and frowns at Ruth. He watched her sleep for a moment, wanting to smile but couldn't.
Pennywise ends up shaking his head, unnerved at a thought. With a slight groan, he leaves Ruth to sleep.
"Irritating child," he mutters half-heartedly.
By late morning, Ruth gently woke from a rather pleasant dream. She hardly ever does anymore. Ruth remembers it being cold like December snow. Her environment was illuminated with a warm, soft glow like Christmas lights. In this dream, a zephyr voice filled her ears and continues to echo.
"May I?" They had asked.
Ruth blushes and grins brightly from the tender yet passionate kiss that followed after her consent. Her lips actually tingled in delight from remembering their soft mouth on hers. She began to giggle lightly. Whoever it was, they left a swarming flutter in her stomach and warmth enveloping her undesirable heart. Ruth knows who it is, too.
I think it's time to come out of hiding, Ruth thought to herself.
The grin Ruth had vanished when she heard the sound of footsteps from downstairs. Someone is in the house. She stiffens and grew silent, listening carefully. Ruth laid in silence for five minutes, hoping whoever intruded on her home would leave. They never did. She then heard a recognizable voice from a male fill the stillness, which Ruth cringes. There was then a second she also knew. Her breath labored, and her eyes grew wide.
Oh, shit, and Shinola!
A/N: Have a safe and Happy Halloween, everyone! Let me know what you think. :)
I'm currently working on chapters 19 and 20, so updates will be slow this time around. I even began a scene for a Christmas installment. I figured I better start now.