A/N:

I'M BACK! Oh my god vacation was awesome! America was awesome! Gen-Con was awesome! I loved it and agh! Sigh... But now I'm home and I've been writing again. So here's a big chapter for you guys!

Onwards! XD

Trixie, in short, was not exactly happy about the situation at hand. But then again she hadn't been happy about the majority of what had been going on lately. No one was! She didn't feel it was right for anyone to be going out at a time like this. Sure, she understood that they needed to get information from the last portal to Zalgo's, and Shad was the best person for the job, and that he was not going along, but still... she was worried. Not only that, but Kate was on some self-given mission to talk to Rochelle? Which for some reason Slender was all jumpy over? It was all so... confusing. And tiring. And the position she found herself in at that current moment in time was not helping.

Being put in a room, alone, with Ben of all people, to try and come up with more locations of use. It was an order of Slender, to use their abilities as Passive proxies to pin point where more possible attacks might be, unusual activity, portals, things of that general nature. And while she sat there drawing anything that the mild dose of Sickness in her bloodstream gave her, it was nothing useful. Just more jobs that they wouldn't be able to hand out because of Slender refusing to put them at risk. And as for Ben, well he had given up a long time ago and was back to one of his previous projects of hacking and altering a game. Once again, jump-scares were the theme.

She jumped when the sound of a fake horror movie scream poured out of his headphones, "Do you mind turning that down a little please?"

"What?" he yelled, trying to hear himself over the volume his headphones were pumping into his ears. He paused, then snickered, removing the buds from his ears and clearing his throat, speaking at a regular volume again, "What?"

Trixie couldn't help but smile in mild amusement, "I asked if you could turn it down, please."

"Oh right. Sure. I was getting bored anyways." He shrugged passively, propping his feet on the desk and lounging backwards lazily.

"Well, you could, you know," she averted her eyes, not wanting to annoy him. She was too stressed for that, "Try and do the job that Slender wants us to do."

He cocked an eyebrow, "Because that'll make all the difference... Face it, this is just him trying to keep us occupied so we don't complain about not being let out. There's nothing we can do here."

"I don't believe that."

"Then whoopee for you for buying the sob story." He rolled his eyes.

"I'm not buying anything." She replied quietly, "I just want this to be over and if Slender wants us to do something than I think we should do it."

"But there's nothing to do." He said pointedly, "Look, no disrespect to the guy, but Slendy is scraping the bottom of the barrel trying to get this fixed. Personally, I'd go for business as usual." He shrugged, "It's not like Zalgo's knocking on our door or anything."

That was a scary thought, and she didn't need to say so to prove it. In a way, she knew he had a point, that this was an unbelievably slow process but at least it was cautious and safe. She wanted to change the subject. She didn't want to talk about Zalgo or how what Slender was doing was wrong or not. It wasn't her place to choose. It was her place to trust him.

"Slender is doing what he thinks is right. You have to at least appreciate that."

"I do. I just don't agree. But still, gives me time to complete a few side projects while we're moping around on our asses." He said dryly, closing his laptop with his foot.

"Now you're starting to sound like Jeff." She stated simply, and then covered her mouth in surprise at herself. She didn't mean to say that, it just slipped out, "I'm sorry I just- Why are you laughing?"

"Because the idea of what you just said was funny. I like to think I have a few more brain cells than Jeffy-boy." He cocked an eyebrow, "Don't give me that look, he may be a friend but he's a hot head driven by a knife."

She couldn't argue with that, so she shrugged meekly, "Well I guess but... It's not as if he's the only killer here."

"I've never killed anyone," he replied pointedly, giving her a look, "Despite what people think."

"But your..." she hesitated, not wanting to offend, "Your dad? I-I thought that... Well I thought that you killed him after he... After he killed you." It was so horrible to think about. Murder, revenge, the fact that every time it was mentioned she was reminded that Ben was dead and a ghost and had to have the memories of his death haunting him. Sure everyone in this place was haunted by something, but only he was murdered.

And yet, he surprised her with a snort, smiling as if it were no big deal, "I didn't kill him, Trix, I just went back to remind him that I don't take kindly to bad parents. Drove him insane, you know; you've never seen a guy run so fast..." he sniggered, "That reminds me, I should drop in again at some point."

Now that really did take her by surprise, "You still visit him?"

"Sure. Someone's got to make sure he stays in his cell."

"Cell? What do you mean?"

His blackened eyes glinted with some kind of cruelty that wasn't intended to her, "He's in an asylum. And I pop in every now and again to make sure he stays there. Doctors don't think seeing ghosts are a good sign."

Trixie stared at him, unsure if it was in horror or sympathy. On one had she agreed with him, someone unstable enough to drown their own son was not fit to be out in the open, especially if there were other children involved. But on the other hand, how could he be so passive at tormenting his own father for years like that? She looked at the floor, voice meek, "H-How long have you, you know... How long have you kept him in there?"

"Well I died in 1989, and Slendy branded me in '92 so..." he counted on his fingers, stopping after a couple of seconds to smirk wickedly, "Since '92."

"All those years?" she exclaimed before she could stop herself.

His eyes hardened as if he were no longer in the mood, "He killed me, Trix."

"But..."

"But I should have left him alone so he could go after someone else?"

"That's not what I meant."

"I know." He sighed, "I just, well... I had people to protect, alright?"

She blinked, starting to put pieces together, "You had siblings..."

"Yup." He grinned, almost as if he were praising her for catching on, but not without the usual undertones of mockery, "Brother and a sister. Well sis had moved out but that's another story."

Trixie didn't know what to say. She found herself in the position of being surprised at him telling her all of this but at the same time not at all. He had never really been one to hide information about himself, but then again there were certain things he just avoided. Why break that trend? Frankly, she wasn't put off by it. She found herself a little pleased that he was so open. But that didn't stop her being a little anxious of him. She'd never heard of someone continuing to push someone to insanity like that, even if said person was already clearly insane. It was just... Well it hurt her head to think too much on it.

Perhaps it was best just to follow his example and let things lie. His business, her business, separate. She looked back at the paper before her, blank and empty of all use to them, "Sorry, if it's not something you want to talk about then we can change the subject."

"If I didn't want to talk about it, I wouldn't. Besides, it's more a case of people around here don't tend to ask. Past is in the past, and no one wants to know. Then again, looking at how pale you've gotten, you didn't want to hear it either." He winked slyly, making fun of her.

"It's just a lot to take in."

"What? That before being dead I was actually alive?" He smirked sarcastically, "Shocker."

She chose to ignore that, "But... Why wait so long before going back? I mean, why did you wait until you were branded and had a job to do instead of going home right away?"

"I did go back right away. But had a wonderful wake up call..." His eyes rolled, "See, when you die and you're unlucky enough to stick around, no one can see or hear you, but they can feel you. It's only thanks to Slendy branding me that I have some kind of physical form." His thin finger extended to tap her shoulder, delivering an eclectic shock in the process. She yelped and gave a sour look. He smiled and continued talking, "So my old man actually being able to see me rather than just get a sense for me had a much faster effect."

She thought of her parents, her brother. What if they too had ended up as ghosts but she couldn't see them because they weren't proxies? She didn't believe that was true, because she hadn't felt anything of their presence since the last time she'd seen them alive. They were gone. And it gave a sickly mix of isolation and relief in the pit of her stomach. Trixie silently wished them a restful afterlife, and wondered if one day she might join them. Unlikely since she was trapped as she was thanks to the proxy brand. She wasn't going anywhere...

"That must have been hard on your siblings to see you like this." She muttered.

"Hey, I like to think I look pretty good for a dead guy thank you very much." He laughed, then shook his head to dismiss the apology she was about to give, "Actually, I didn't let them see me. I'd just spent my time getting the old man away from them, I wasn't going to risk them getting the Sickness from me."

"I guess... that was harder on you. To have to hide."

In what was probably the most surprising thing he had done throughout the conversation; Ben stopped talking. He was silent for a moment, and that moment lasted a little longer than was comfortable. And that was when Trixie knew she had crossed a line. She herself refused to speak about her family, she shouldn't expect he do the same. And after what she'd heard already, she didn't want him to. Suddenly, she flinched when Ben delivered another static shock by poking her shoulder.

He snickered, "You want to speak before you start feeling too awkward?"

Typical that he'd turn the tables on her like that. She cleared her throat, cheeks warm from registering the lameness of her change of topic choice, but it was the first thing she could think of under pressure like that, "You know I took up your advice. About... drawing for fun again."

"Oh? Do tell." He smirked, a smug quality about it as usual.

"Nothing special. Just... Just thought I'd let you know." Please take the hint to add your own topic of conversation, she mentally begged.

"Well I'm flattered to hear I have such an impression on you." He winked, "Very flattered."

She sighed, ignoring him when he moved over to join her at the table, "I-I wouldn't be."

"Yet I am." He smirked, leaning in to deliberately invade her personal space.

She glanced upwards at him, leaning away slightly at the sight of the red of his pupils brightening, "Um..."

He sniggered, "Don't tell me you're still scared of me?"

"N-Not scared."

"Nervous then." He corrected. She couldn't deny that one and he knew it, "Again I find myself flattered."

Trixie cursed herself when she felt herself flush. But she was convinced that it was just because it was warm in there, "Can you not crowd me like that, please?"

He deliberately stayed where he was, "Like what?"

"Like th-agh!" Trixie gasped as a pain shot through her temple.

"Dramatic much..."

"N-No it's... Shit! Ow!" She clenched her eyes shut, gripping her head and whimpering, "P-Pencil... Agh! Give me a pencil!"

"I doubt stabbing yourself is going to help." He commented, pushing her pencil-case towards her and arching an eyebrow, "Wait, you're getting one of those Sickness things again."

Trixie nodded, grasping the pencil so hard that it started to creak, "Wh-What is it?" She asked, eyes tight shut as she scribbled furiously. It was like something was controlling her. That horrific burn that pulsated through her body once again returning to force images into her head.

Ben narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the harsh, dark lines and smudges slashing across the page, "Uh... It looks like... A dork in a cheap Halloween costume."

"Ben!"

"Alright, it looks like Shad."

She gasped, the pencil slipping from her fingers as her eyes finally snapped open. He was right. It was Shad. Eyes smudged out and his hands reaching out desperately for help. She was frozen. Fear gripping her throat. Not again. Please... "G-Get Slender..."

The night air was crisp, but not unpleasant. Shad's cloak glided across the damp ground, mind focused in concentration as he tracked the shadows around him. Darkness held Sickness, and Sickness was exactly what he was looking for to try and locate where the last portal had been dismissed. All they needed was a trace of residue and they would be able to recreate it, leading them straight to Zalgo and with any luck, the missing proxies. The demon looked around, checking that the area was empty, quiet and secure before continuing on his way.

On the ground a few paces ahead of him, Smile sniffed at the ground, eyes well adjusted to the darkness. The canine didn't like this one bit. Something didn't smell right. There was definitely Sickness here. But... too much for just portal residue. He may just be a deformed dog to anyone else, but he was intelligent, and understood the importance as well as the danger that this mission included. No mistakes. No delays. No excuses. He wanted to get back home as soon as possible before someone else got hurt. It was his job to guard the proxies, and he took pride in that job.

Smile slowed his pace and glanced over his shoulder, an impatient growl escaping the back of his throat. Shad nodded, "No time to waste, we know. Do you sense anything?"

The dog barked and continued on his way, confirming that his answer was yes. Shad narrowed his eyes against the darkness and followed. There were two very important things to remember while being out in a crisis at a time like this. The first was that they had to be quick. With Zalgo working as swiftly as he was, and with this mysterious Jane character appearing so suddenly; time was against them. And the second was to be silent. For all they knew, there was some innocent standing close by. Or worse, someone connected to Zalgo in some shape or form. Quick and silent. Like the shadows.

"Hey! Hey, Shad! Found anything yet?"

Shad tensed, turning sharply to glare at the masked teenager who had once again fallen behind due to distraction, "For the love of peace, Toby, keep your voice to a discrete level and keep up!"

Toby shrugged, the cracking of his ligaments for louder than his voice, and raced to catch up, "I'm just scouting the area. You never know who might be lurking in the shadows... Besides you anyways."

"Stay focused."

"I am! And I actually s-"

"And stay silent..." Shad added with a forceful look, "I asked you along to assist me, not to alert all beings of our position and reason for being here."

"Alright fine, I can take a hint." He pouted behind his mask, marching forward ahead, "I guess you don't want to hear about the guy I saw back there who looked just like Hoody. Thought it would help since he's supposed to be missing and all but... Meh. You kinda have a point with that one... He doesn't talk much so he probably wouldn't be able to help a lot."

"That is because he is mute and-" Shad stopped dead, taking a split second to process what Toby had just said, "Excuse me, what did you just say?"

"That Hoody doesn't talk much."

"Toby!"

"What?"

"You saw Hoody?"

"Well it looked just like him."

Shad's eyes turned cold, grabbing Toby by the shoulder and turning him around to face him, "Are you doing this on purpose...?"

"Doing what on purpose?"

"Did you, or did you not, see Hoody?"

Toby took a step back. He'd seen that look before. Mostly on Jeff, and that usually didn't end well for him if he was standing too close, "I guess so, it could have been him. Hey just ask him yourself, he's standing right over there."

Shad turned around sharply to see a figure watching them from the end of the ally way. The force of Sickness hit him as if he had just been struck. The figure was tall, male in structure and his face hidden by a black veil of sorts. Only faintly, there were the red stitching of eyes and a mouth marked into it. The rest of his body was covered by a musty orange hoody and jeans. He just... stood there. Watching them. He barely looked able to move a muscle, he was so ridged. It looked like he wanted to move. To speak and scream and shout, just had Jack had apparently done when Kate found him. But as Shad had pointed out a moment ago, Hoody was mute. He was not going to make a sound.

"Hoody?" Shad gasped, the Sickness starting to get to him already. There was powerful work here, "Hoody, if that really is you, give us a sign."

The figure didn't move for the longest time. And then, out of nowhere. He pointed. Just, pointed... Right behind them. Shad didn't even have time to react. Because one minute Shad and Toby were just staring in confusion at the proxy that had been missing for years, and the next... Well the next, they were being attacked by another proxy that had been missing for years.

A yellow jacket and a face hidden by a white mask became a blur from pure speed. He looped an arm around Toby's throat, yanking him backwards. Toby gagged, "M-Masky? It's me man! Wow good grip!"

"What is this?" Shad demanded.

He received no answer, instead he received Hoody grabbing him with inhuman strength, cutting off his hair supply. He couldn't breathe! They were too close... The Sickness was too much! He tried to shake them off. Toby squirmed and kicked, but it was as if Masky felt nothing of his attempts. The two of them were weak as infants compared to them. The Sickness made Masky and Hoody just too strong" Too inhuman! And the darkness... It was moving in too fast. All of this was moving too fast. Too fast and too dark and too Sick! The distant sound of barking could be heard. But Smile seemed to be nowhere near able to help them. There was too much Sickness... Too much...

"Shad..." Toby gasped, "It's her..."

Shad could faintly hear a voice. Girlish and excitable, like a child who was allowed to open an early Christmas present. But laced with the maturity of someone older. She cackled, "More friends to play with? Thank you, Daddy!"

"You're welcome, child." Replied a darker, deformed voice that chilled the air around them. Familiar and foreboding. Zalgo sneered, "Now don't get too carried away with them like you did last time."

"I won't, Daddy, I promise." She grinned, teeth sharp and bared as she bent her slim legs to get a closer look at her new toys, "I'm going to savour it this time..."

A/N:

Shad and Toby are in the hands of Jane and Zalgo after Hoody and Masky have shown up under Sickness control! Well shit!

Let me know what you think guys! Sorry again for being gone so long, but trust me the vacation was so worth it! XD