Title: Fearless

Rating: M for Language, Violence, Grotesquerie, and General Trippiness

Summary: A girl suffers trauma to her temporal lobe. The result: no fear. ~ Uh, I guess you don't have to squint for romance anymore. 1000 words per drabble.

Disclaimer & Important Notes: Don't own Freddy; don't own the rhymes. You know the drill.

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Friends

(Night 125)

When Ash arrived in the dreamworld alone—and there was no Freddy snapping disdainfully into existence in front of her—she hurried to the workshed, hoping to catch him. Her bare feet were bitten by the grates; thanks to her speed, they actually scratched and bled a little, which she didn't think had happened before. The last time Freddy had been absent like this, she'd held his fedora in her hands and had given it to him like a gift. She could still remember the texture of the felt in her hands, the smear of soot it had left on her fingers.

But his hat wasn't there on the workbench, and neither was his glove, and she was suddenly aware of the fact that he might be out "hunting piggies," as he put it. She made a vague expression of distaste and hesitated, then sat down with her hands tucked beneath her thighs and examined the array of toys with only her eyes.

Half the night drifted away and her eyes closed with a faint sense of loss. She was bored, and if she were honest, she had to recognize that she missed his company. Sarcastic, lecherous, fiery, mean. Clever. She considered exploring, looking for him—but who knew what nasties Freddy kept lurking around his dream world, and while there was no real reason to be afraid(and she wouldn't be, even if there was), she didn't want him to be mad at what he would doubtless term her "snooping." His anger, while a little intoxicating, was neither an efficient nor pleasant way to pass time.

Still, surely this was the first time he hadn't been around to make her dreams a little more alive.

A small ache settled in next to her heart, nesting there. She realized abruptly that it was also the first time in a long time that she felt her own keen loneliness.

This little piggy went to market;
This little piggy stayed at home;
This little piggy had roast beef;
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went
"Wee, wee, wee,"

All the way home.

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This drabble is dedicated to both Anna and A-Creature-of-Darkness for the terrific prompt, "Friends."

It is 318 words long.

I wanted this to be from Freddy's perspective, but Ash dominated it. I suppose it was her right—a lot of the recent drabbles have been Fredcentric. But then I thought it could be both and they could share the frame, Freddy and Ash. But no. I don't know if Ash was just feeling like a dominatrix or if Freddy was still in denial, but he didn't want to make an appearance here. Adamantly refused, as a matter of fact…which is stubborn and foolish, really, considering how much he wants to keep her around. Silly Fred. Again, I say: they're like BFFs!

Anyway, since it's all about Ash, I want to take a moment to say that this drabble isn't about a moment of friendship (which is finite) or one or both of them being unexpectedly friendly to each other. It's about one of the fundamental and timeless things that forms a friendship: a breach, however brief, in the loneliness that surrounds the human condition. We are all islands, and we need bridges.

This drabble, as well as the next two, all take place on Night 125, just for the record. Thanks again to Anna and A-Creature-of-Darkness for being flippin' awesome.