"...Childhood is measured out by sounds and smells and sights, before the dark hour of reason grows..."

-John Betjeman

Ch. 5

Nails gets lost in the small field of sunflowers by the Sawyer house. The sunflowers nod their heads lazily to the sun, content to bask in its midday heat. Nails stands among them in a daze, and waits for something. A sound, a movement.

A familiar buzzing in the distance. Nails' eyes brighten up and she scampers off into the direction of the woods, as fast as her tiny bare feet would will her to go.

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"Oh my god. Oh my god!"

"What the fuck was he after?"

"I don't know." Scarlett whimpers. "I don't know. Timmy, let's get out of here."

Timmy swaggers and drops partially to his knees. Leatherface had grazed his back with the chainsaw; graze seems like a mild word to use for injury and seemingly might not even do much, but it was a chainsaw. It had cut right through Timmy's shirt, skin, muscle and a part of a bone is showing.

The couple jump and tense when somebody screams from not too far away.

"What was that...?"

"Oh god...he got Anne!" Scarlett's lower lip trembles and she shakes violently, "No! No...Anne!"

"Scarlett, no! Come on, we can't help her now. Let's go!"

The woods, even in the middle of the day, is dark and misleading. The baking heat does not help anyone trying to escape; the thick overgrowth of thorns and bushes everywhere certainly served more to further obscure a passage for salvation. We, omnipresent viewers, see that there is no way out, and we all know what this spells for them.

"Timmy!" Scarlett pulls him back. "Timmy, wait!" She edges closer to a group of trees clumped together, veiled by dried up vines and bushes.

"What is it? C'mon let's go..."
"No Timmy, wait." Scarlett insists. "Look..." She points into the nothingness.

"Where?"

"Behind the tree..."

"Dammit, Scarlett; this is a goddamn forest, there are trees everywhere--"

"There!" Scarlett whispers and she staggers forward in pursuit. Timmy is alarmed, but sees what Scarlett had been pointing to: a small figure darting from one tree to the next...a small kid or something.

"Hey...hey, wait!" Scarlett figure stops and peers out inquisitively from behind a tree. "Hey there...are you lost?"

"Scarlett," Timmy hisses nervously. The woods had become chillingly quiet once more, and there is no sign of the chainsaw wielding madman anywhere.

"Did he get your mommy and daddy?" Scarlett asks, keeping her voice low as she comes closer. "Come with us, honey....don't be scared. We're getting out of here--"

The little girl says nothing. Instead she partially comes out of her hiding place and stares up curiously at Scarlett. She had long, tangles black hair, a filthy pale blue sun dress caked with dried blood and no shoes on. Other than that she didn't seem to be hurt anywhere.

"We should take her with us."

"What? Scarlett, she might be..."

"No...come with us, honey." Scarlett reaches out her hand. Hesitantly, the little girl takes it, and she tugs at her gently, as if motioning Scarlett to come with her.

"Where are we going?"

The little girl points to a different part of the wood. It seems safe and there are signs of a blue sky and a spot of a highway.

"A highway!" Scarlett exclaims in joy and she pulls Timmy up. "Timmy, we're saved!"

But the moment they step out of the sinister shade, the sound of a deathly buzz comes into motion.

(A/N: got a bit lazy bacause im kind of aware nobody'd interested in this story...but imma push through anyways. lol. any comments, suggestions and violent reactions, please post as R&R, thank you :D)