A two year old boy sits by his sister in their living room, giggling happily as they played with their favorite toys. The little girl held a stuffed rabbit toy tightly until it squeaked while her brother holds a tiny, yellow smiley face pillow. He teethed on it with a soft babble and they never noticed or heard the low thudding footsteps approaching them.
The little children saw the shadows fall over them and they looked up, smiling brightly when the familiar faces of their parents came into view. They reached their arms up to their opposite parent, the boy being cradled against his mother's chest while his sister was lifted up into her father's arms. The boy had abandoned his pillow and was instead playing with the pearl necklace around his mother's neck, giggling to himself as they jingled together.
"Typical, I have a son named after me, but he's more like you." He heard his father say, but knew no meaning to the words yet. To the twins, it was all just babble they were not used to.
"Well adleast you have Emma, Jeff. She can always be daddy's little girl while I have my baby boy." She kissed the boy's head and he giggled louder, playing with a strand of his mother's curly black hair.
"I guess you're right..Ain't she, Emma?" He tickled the girl under her chin, causing her to bubble up in laughter and grab her father's hand. She let go of her rabbit to wrap her other tiny hand around his finger, not willing to let go as she cooed softly. Her mother knelt down to scoop up the rabbit, fixing it's overall dress before handing it back to Emma.
"I'm always right, Jeff." The twins' mother said, fixating her son on her hip. Their father rolled his eyes, scoffing. "Whatever, Jane.." They never noticed the water rising up around them. But the children did. They watched with fear as the crystal water rose up high and higher past their parents' lags. Jeffrey let out a small sound, trying to move out of his mother's grip to get away from the water but she only held him tighter.
The water was rising faster, it was beginning to soak into his sock. He didn't want to be trapped under water! He squirmed harder, the water quickly rising up past his knee. He tried hitting his mother to get her attention, even trying to say Mama. The water was up to his chest now, not slowing down in the slightest. All Jeffrey could do was take a deep breath as the water heightened to his chin and even past that. Bubbles were escaping his nose and he screamed into the water, eyes shooting open wide.
Jeff suddenly shot up, whipping his face out of the sink full of running water as he coughed and sputtered. He looked around, spraying water droplets in different directions. He could still hear the music downstairs, the party still going on even as he accidentally fell asleep while rinsing his face. He grabbed a towel and dried himself along with as much as he could on his black sweatshirt before heading back downstairs.
He eased by a couple too engrossed in each other's faces to even notice him, looking around and spotting the clock. Midnight? It was already Midnight? Maybe it was time he and Emma went home.
Wait...
Where was Emma?
Jeff looked around more, trying to spot either the white hoodie or the familiar brown curls of his sister. He searched the rooms, a deep sinking feeling beginning to grow in his stomach when he realized she was nowhere to be found. "Oh no.." He tried to remember where he had saw her go when they first arrived. She had gone to the left. Out to the patio!
He rushed through the door, trying for a light only to crunch on the broken peices of light bulb. He looked down, staring at the shard under his sneakers before raising his eyes to the dark forest and calling out. "Emma! Em let's go home!" He listened as his voice carried off in an echo, waiting for his sister's reply. There came none.
The boy quickly pulled out his phone and dialed his sister's number, bringing it to his ear and listening to it ring.
"Come on, come on! Em where are you?"
So what if you can see the darkest side of me? No one will ever change this animal I have become. Help me believe it's not the real me. Somebody help me tame this animal I have become!
Dread filled into his heart as he turned his head to where he heard his sister's ringtone and the small light shining from within the grass by the steps. Jeff picked up Emma's phone, looking around the dark as he clutched it tightly. "M-Maybe she already went home and dropped her phone," He said, trying to reassure himself.
He circled around the house and took a left turn, hurrying down the street and taking the fastest route to the Orphanage. He burst through the door, throwing on a light as he rushed into their shared room. "Emma! Emma, you here?" Light chased away the darkness in their room as he opened the door, staring at two empty beds.
"Oh no..oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no no no no no!" He ran back outside, heading deep into the forest as he screamed into the air. "EMMA! EMMA WHERE ARE YOU!?" The tree tried to grab at him and hold him back but Jeff only pushed on, ignoring the small rips and tears forming along his sweatshirt.
He had to find her. He had to find Emma. Was she kidnapped? Had she slept over at a friend's house? When had she even gone outside? Why did he have to push her into coming?
The trees suddenly opened up into a small clearing and he skidded to a halt, looking around wildly as his sense of direction vanished. His shoulders slumped as tears weld up in his eyes, dropping to his knees. "No..Emma.." He buried his face in his hands as tears rushed down his face, teeth clenching together as he refrained from pulling his hair in anger.
He suddenly looked up when there was a small noise in front of him. "Emma?" He called out again. A figure did step out of the trees, but it was not his sister. The measurements were all wrong. The waist was too thick, the arms and legs too built. Whoever it was was male, a pale yellow hoodie hugging their upper half with loose fitting blue jeans covering their legs. He thought he could see the other's face under the hood, but it was too dark. They appeared to be frowning though.
"Please..," Jeff whimpered, getting back to his feet, "help me find me sister.."
The person remained silent, staring at him before walking forward to get a closer look. Jeff's vision was beginning to adjust and now he could see why he was unable to make out their facial features. They were wearing a mask. A black mask that covered their face and neck with red embroidered eyes and frown. He instinctively took a step back out of fear only to have the other take a step closer.
They looked him up and down, taking him in and analyzing him like a vulture to it's prey. They suddenly snagged his left hand and he yelped. "Hey! Let go!" He tried to pull his wrist out of the other's grip but it was iron tight. They looked at his palm, pulling his sleeve up more to reveal part of his arm. A tense second of silence and then he heard the other boy gasp suddenly and let go of his hand.
He pulled his hand back, staring at the masked other in confusion. Behind the yarn he could tell they were staring back at him, either with the intent to kill or to help flashing in their unseen eyes. He finally caught sign of his breath, white puffs of air escaping from his mouth everytime his breathed. It couldn't have been that cold could it?
There was the snapping of a twig and Jeff turned to look over his shoulder, yelping when the hoodied other yanked him back around and began pulling him through the forest. He had no time to ask where they were going as a low chuckle slithered it's way to his ears, ice creeping down his spine at the chilling laughter. For some reason, he imagined a clown with black claws chasing him through an abandoned amusement park, the sugary sweet smells of cotton candy and funnel cakes now sickening and caking him in fear.
he could even hear distant music somewhere, a familiar little tune that all children had heard adleast once in their life time. It was Pop Goes The Wheasel.
Why did it seem like he really should be running?
Why did he feel like he had been in this situation before?
If the hoodied figure was running he might as well too! jeff yanked his hand away and picked up his dragging feet, soon becoming neck and neck with the other boy as whatever it was chasing them chuckled again. It was deep and miliscious, spreading ice through his veins as he caught the subtle hints of cotton candy again.
He wanted to look back but a voice inside him yelled at him not to, that if he did whatever he saw would the last thing he would see.
His foot suddenly snagged on an up root and Jeff yelped, tripping and his chin slammed into the ground. He tasted blood for a moment and groaned as he stood back up, rubbing his aching jaw. The person in the yellow hoodie and mask was gone, never noticing he fell, and for the first time in a very very long time, Jeff felt alone.
The trees loomed over him, reaching out with their crooked fingers to grab at him and pull him deeper into the forest and never let him go. Jeff shivered, pulling his dark sweatshirt around him tighter. Even with all the darkness he could see his breath, the sweat collecting on his brow even beginning to freeze. He looked around in a desperate hope to find the other he had been with. "Hello?" He called out, the woods swallowing his voice and keeping it from carrying off.
The chill in his veins spread and burned at the back of his skull. Someone was watching him, with a deadly intent. He glanced over his shoulder slowly, turning to get a better look.
He immediately regretted ever coming out into the forest.
If the stranger with the black mask was odd, what stood before him was ultimately terrifying.
A clown. A tall, lanky armed, dishevealed looking clown stood barely a foot away from him. There was what appeared to be blood dripping from the side of his mouth, as if he had gotten into a previous fight with something. As it's glowing white eyes stared down at him, Jeff could vaguely hear the music from before, along with the dismembered laughter of small children as they danced around their clown friend. But this was no joy bringer.
Then it spoke and Jeff could feel the air ripped out of him.
"Your sister eluded me...but you will not be so lucky."
Before he could even begin to wonder what that meant, a crushing pressure was suddenly on his throat and his eyes widened in horror. Jeff clawed at the black claws around his neck, gasping for air as his asophogus was squeezed tight. He was lifted off the ground, kicking his legs out in an attempt to strike the clown and release him.
It was no use, the edged of his vision were quickly darkening and his movements were growing slower as his strength was literally being pulled out of him. He grabbed at the clown's wrist weakly in a last attempt before he blacked out. All he did though was grin at him as he killed the teen slowly and painfully.
Jeff never saw the flash of yellow behind the clown, his eyes already close and breath thin even as a thick branch smashed into the back of the demon's skull.
The clown yelped as he stumbled forward, losing his grip on jeff and holding the back of his head in pain as he glared back to who had struck him. His eyes met the dark blue ones of the teen who's face hid behind a mask, mouth blacked out with raised eyebrows. The boy threw down the branch, fists curled at his sides as he stared the clown down.
There was a noise in front of him and Laughing Jack turned to see Masky's partner come out of the forest. He slowly rose to his feet, glancing between the two as he heaved quietly. Then, the one with the white mask spoke.
"Get out of here, Jack! They're not yours and they never will be!"
Jack snarled low, baring his teeth as he barked. "I nearly got both tonight! I would have had them long ago had it not been for you two!"
From behind his mask, Tim narrowed his eyes. "They're too strong for you, Jack. Even if you get them alone again, once they figure out who they are they'll be too powerful for you alone."
"They are children."
"Yeah, but whose children are they? Your days are numbered before they realize who they are, and then you'll never get to them."
Laughing Jack shook his head and pointed an accusing claw to the boy. "You wait and see. Their fifteenth will be their last! Their blood will run and their souls will be mine." Those were the clowns last words before he melted down and vanished into a puff of black smoke, leaving nothing but the smell of rubber of cake behind.
Masky and Hoody quickly rushed to the fallen Jeff, rolling him onto his back to clear his airway in case anything had somehow gotten in there. Masky looked him over, tilting his head side to side to check for any other injuries. All it looked like however, was just the bruises on his neck from Jack's claws. He felt his friend's gaze on him and looked up, finding the other teen staring at him through his mask.
"I know, I know! Believe me, I do. If what Laughing Jack says is true, hen we don't have a lot of time.." He looked back down to the male twin on the ground. "and neither do they."
