Chapter 8

Promise

The darkness of the night now covered all across Happy Tree Town. Tiny stars twinkled in the night sky high above throughout the universe. The moon was full in size, and its white glow gave night-time visibility to the now silent town. Crickets chirped and made sounds as they moved through the grass outside. Lights were lit in some of the Tree Friend's homes, those who decided to stay up late for whatever purpose of their choosing.

One such home happened to be Flaky's, where inside laid the Stranger and Flaky on a white sofa, watching the television screen that played an old black and white film. On the coffee table before them were small pieces of whatever remained of the Stranger's 25th birthday cake, with crumbs that scattered across the plate.

The Stranger was wide awake, enjoying another film that he believed would be fun to watch on his special day, and smiled widely knowing today went so well thanks to Flaky. Flaky, however, went for a different approach and decided to take an early nap during his late celebration. She was laying her head against the Stranger's left shoulder, her eyes shut and sleeping silently. The Stranger had his arm wrapped around her to hold her tight to his side, and slowly brushed her quills with his hands that helped Flaky go to sleep.

He looked down to see her sleeping face, and saw how beautiful she looked as she slept against him. The Stranger was slightly emotional: she done a lot for him in just a single day, and so much was done for him before this date. She was undoubtedly the greatest asset to his goal to fight the mad man, and a true friend that he was glad to have by his side... perhaps even more.

He swiftly looked over to see the grandfather clock tracking time and was shocked to see it was aiming for 12:00 AM, with only five more minutes to spare. Knowing that it would most likely go off, he did not want Flaky to wake up from such a wonderful nap, especially for everything she has done for him today. With that thought, he grabbed the remote beside him and aimed it at the television.

"I know how it ends anyway: two unlikely people who you would think will never find love find each other in the end and live happily ever after. Hey Marty, you go man."

The Stranger turned off the television and stopped the movie in its tracks. Placing the remote back down onto the table before him, he slowly move himself away from Flaky and gently let her fall on the sofa without waking her up. And, like a husband carries his newly-wed bride, the Stranger leaned over and placed his right arm underneath her legs and his left under her back, this time going at an angle to hit the quills at the flat end to avoid being punctured like before.

Holding her up carefully on his arms, he slowly walked out of the living room and upstairs to the second floor. He walked to the other end of the hall to reach her bed room, and moved the slightly open door with his back, entering her room silently. He took his steps slowly to reach the left side of Flaky's bed, and used his right foot to help move the covers to give Flaky an empty spot to lay.

Placing her gently onto the bed, the Stranger laid her head against the soft pillow and let her body lie across the bed, making sure she would sleep comfortably. After laying her completely down onto the bed, he reached for the covers and dragged them slowly across the top of her body. He was scared at first, thinking he woke her up as she made a sigh of relief, but calmed down seeing she was still in a deep slumber.

Seeing that she was now perfectly comfortable under the bed sheets, he stood up straight and gave her a warm smile.

"Good night, Flaky. I'll see you in the morning… and thank you again."

The Stranger tip-toed across the floor to avoid making any creaking sounds on the floorboard, and made it outside of her room. He turned around to grab the door handle and began to bring the door to a close. But before the door was made completely shut, he looked through the small edge of visibility to watch the sleeping Flaky.

You're not doing all of this hero work to save them. You're doing this to save yourself. You're not a hero. You are still the same selfish bastard from the start. Isn't that right?

The taunting words he heard tonight from the mad man rang through his head. What was his real intentions? Was he really just using the Tree Friends as a scapegoat to get himself home, and did not actually care for them? Was he really the selfish person from the beginning, only caring to save himself? He would not let these people to die just to go home… would he?

The Stranger was questioning his motives, despite being in this world long enough to make a clear decision. But then he began to recall a day back during his beginning hours working on his plan to save the Tree Friends, a day that he thought was indeed his real reason to fight. And it had everything to do with Flaky.

3 Months Earlier

The time was just before seven-in-the-morning, the summer sun just barely shining upon the eastern horizon. Since today was a Sunday, many Tree Friends have decided to sleep in instead of waking up to do more boring work or worry about any troubles.

This was not the same for the Stranger. Instead of lying down on his nice bed having pleasant dreams of a beautiful morning, he was running frantically back and forth between his desk and his new map of Happy Tree Town on the wall. Breathing heavily and at a fast rate, his eyes were jumpy as he observed his journals and the map before him.

"Okay, so he attacked here and here yesterday, using that pink beaver and yellow rabbit. He may be moving here and might use that mime; he hasn't killed him for some time. He could be planning to use that super squirrel that kills everything in site without hesitation, and I have to be there to tell him to fuck off. Then again, that lamb with the pickle has been absent too, and he may attack by the tower for a massive A.O.E causing multiple deaths… or dear God, where the fuck is he going to strike! THINK!"

Through just the first few weeks announcing to Flaky his plan to save everyone, he has changed his course of attack multiple times. Some days the mad man attempted multiple situations, while others only few and sometimes none. People may be used constantly or rarely, and some situations don't result in death in anyway. Areas that were used varied from situation to situation, and always involved someone different. The mad man's moves were practically unpredictable.

The Stranger believed there was some kind of pattern, something that the mad man worked with, and he had to discover a way to counteract that pattern with his own. Every second meant that a Tree Friend was likely to die by pure accident, murder, or random A.I such as the Ants against Sniffles, who proved more challenging to stop than he intended.

It was a restless task for the Stranger; there was no time to take breaks or to lay down. He could not figure out a day that could be peaceful or be the death of everyone, so he always had to stay vigilant and wake up early to plan out his attack before the mad man did. It was exhausting; it would most likely be the death of him instead of some freak accident,

Still looking back and forth between his journal and the map, using his marker to place checkpoints and details, along with putting marks under the faces of unique Tree Friends for days of survival, the Stranger failed to notice Flaky was standing outside his room observing his actions the past five minutes.

Flaky, a little worried about the Stranger's current state of affairs, walked forward slowly and spoke softly. "Hello?"

The Stranger had no reaction to the word, and continued to mumble to himself as he wrote in his journal.

"Hello?!"

Flaky spoke a little louder, hoping the increased volume would grab his attention. It failed.

A little agitated by his failure to respond to her, Flaky walked right up to the Stranger, close to his left side, in hopes he would notice her in his peripheral vision. As before, he failed to even notice her existence.

Pushed to her limits, Flaky took out her right hand and slightly shoved the Stranger's left shoulder, making him jump in shock at the sudden touch. He turned around to face Flaky, hyperventilating from her sudden appearance, and had a confused expression as he made a nervous smile.

"Oh, h-hi, Flaky. I didn't notice you were standing there." The Stranger calmed down and relaxed his body. "What are you doing up so early? It's a weekend, you should be enjoying the day relaxing."

Flaky crossed her arms and looked at the Stranger with a smirk, gesturing him to ask himself the same question. The Stranger looked down and shook his head in disbelief. "Yeah, I haven't slept at all last night. I was just… scared about today as I had this bad thought, so I got up and just walked around in here trying to plan out my attack." The Stranger looked back at his journal and continued to look at his map and book in frequent motion. "This job is one that requires constant work, Flaky. Any moment something bad could happen and I need to be prepared, so if it means I need to skip a night's rest, than I have to take it."

Flaky shook her head, worried about the Stranger's health and sanity and upset over his constant belief in work. Even though she was scared about this world like he was, especially learning about the truth as it proved more accurately with each passing day, she knew that there had to be days in which nothing bad did happen, which there was.

Flaky tapped the Stranger's shoulder again to grab his attention, though this time he looked a little agitated. "Flaky, I'm sorry, but I am a little busy trying to figure out my move. Please, I think it would be best if you-"

Flaky brought up her hand to halt the Stranger's excuse, and pointed her right index finger out the bedroom door, asking him to exit and come with her down stairs.

The Stranger once again shook his head. "Flaky, I need to work right now. Just let me-"

Flaky made a grunt sound with her throat and pointed to him and the door multiple times to signal him to stop and come down stairs. The Stranger looked at her confused. "Well, just let me do-"

"Now."

Flaky spoke clearly for the Stranger, which caught his attention and made him go silent for a short time. He looked down at his journal, then to the map, then back to her, and placed a worried and tired look as he nodded his head. "Okay, I'll come down. Just let me write one more-"

Flaky took the marker and journal from his hands and closed the book quickly, and placed it onto the Stranger's work desk and proceeded to move downstairs. The Stranger sighed, placed his hands by his sides, and made a small smile. "I have to admit, under that little skittish movements and nervous chuckles of hers, she certainly has a strong independent attitude to get shit done… man, I really like that about her."

He followed behind Flaky and moved downstairs with her to meet up in the kitchen. Being the second to enter, the Stranger noticed that Flaky was preparing some kind of basket with food and a large blanket, filling it with sandwiches and other types of food that could be brought from place to place and stay fresh.

She then closed the basket and picked up a large light-tan sunhat and placed it over her head, and turned around to face the Stranger, who stood confused as he watched her move around. Flaky pointed to him, then to the basket, then to the door, then back to him once more.

The Stranger was shocked, trying to make out Flaky's request. "Wait, hold on a minute, Flaky. Are you really asking me that we should just go outside like nothing bad is about to happen? Just take a break from work when people could die any second? Flaky, I love to come with you, really I would, but I have lots of work to do and with little time to…"

Flaky crossed her arms once more and lowered her head while keeping her eyes on the Stranger. She sighed and shook her head, and gave the Stranger a look that made him feel terrible inside.

"Flaky, don't stand and look at me like that. You know I don't like it when you do that." Flaky began to slowly look up and make a little sarcastic begging face, which made the Stranger tense up and shook his head multiple times silently. He then lost control of his mind and brought his hands to his sides. "Damn it, Flaky, why are you so good at this?!" He lowered his head, sighed, and looked back up slowly. "Okay, I will go with you, but I'm still bringing my gear, and if anything, ANYTHING goes wrong, I'm getting us out of there. Understand?" Flaky brought her hands to her hips and stood with a proud and successful look, and nodded her head.

The Stranger took a deep breath and calmed down his nerves. "Okay, I will be right back with my stuff." The Stranger turned around and went straight upstairs to his room, quickly entering to look to see his old tattered backpack he had yet to replace. Checking inside quickly, he made sure he had his remaining medical supplies along with a couple of other goods. Seeing everything was in order, and picked up his bag and prepared to exit the room.

He then stopped halfway between his room and the hallway, and slowly walked back inside to stand in front of his wardrobe. He dropped his stuff down and opened the doors of the wardrobe, revealing his multiple coats and a mirror to show his current condition. He still looked like he just got out of bed, and felt disgusted for seeing it… which felt weird questioning it.

"Well I can't go out with her looking like this!" He looked in to see a small comb and began to brush down all the fur that stood up, and made sure his fur was laid out in a nice flat pattern. After a quick few swipes of the comb, his fur was placed back into position. He put the comb back and looked at himself in the mirror again. For some reason, he decided to also check his teeth, making sure they were clean and free of any leftovers, which proved to be the case. He sniffed his body to make sure he did not rank of disgusting smells, and was glad to know he smelt clean as before.

The Stranger then rummaged through his variety of coats and was deciding which one was best to wear. "Okay, we are going outside somewhere, so which one looks the best for the occasion... Oh, this will work." He took out his signature brown leather coat, which he loved wearing, and dawned it quickly.

He observed himself in the mirror to see if he looked cleaned enough to go out, which he was satisfied with the results. "Alright, I am good to…" The Stranger then blushed slightly. "Wait… why am I so concerned about my looks? We're just two friends who work together and have decided to go out somewhere to sit and relax together, that's all… right?" The Stranger shook his head and removed the thought. "Yeah, it doesn't mean anything. I'm just keeping up my image for her… I-I mean for the town, of course!"

Closing the doors of the wardrobe and picking up his gear once more, the Stranger ran down the steps to see Flaky anxiously waiting to exit the house. She noticed the Stranger now looking sharper than ever and smiled seeing him so prepared to go outside with her.

The Stranger walked over to Flaky with a warm smile, and noticed she was currently carrying the basket. He reach out his hand and laid out his palm, "May I carry that for you?" Flaky smiled and gently handed the basket to the Stranger. The Stranger, now holding the completely filled basket with his right hand, stood up straight and looked at Flaky with a little smirk. "So, you know where we are heading out to?" Flaky nodded her head quickly and led the Stranger out the front door, moving swiftly to finally exit the house after a long wait.

After making it outside, the Stranger stood still and took a nice deep breath of the summer air, which he could tell fall will soon make its sign of appearance, but enjoyed the warm fragrance of the outdoors.

Looking behind to see Flaky securely lock the door behind her, she walked up and stood next to the Stranger, the two looking at each other with warm smiles. Flaky then began to take a short lead in front of the Stranger, in which he followed suit.

The short trek down the sidewalk was mostly silent, with a few words said here and there, normally observations that were made during their walk. The Stranger did not know what Flaky's intention was to just leave outside the house without any sense of fear. She appeared to be fine, but the Stranger was constantly on the lookout for danger, moving his eyes to see anything. Ironically, it's as if the two switched places on this one walk: Flaky the confident, and the Stranger the scared one.

Flaky could tell his tension was building up as they made their walk. She appreciated every bit of work he has been doing, and trusts him completely to get the job done, but was always worried about his health; he never seemed to learn that a break in life is sometimes necessary. Though she did understand his concern for safety, even though she tried to hide it, she was indeed scared of this trip as well. But she felt like a chance needed to be made, and decided to help the Stranger along the way.

Flaky stopped the Stranger in his spot to point out they have made it to their designated location: Happy Tree Park. The Stranger looked around, and noticed a good number of Tree Friends were walking about, despite how early the day was. It did indeed feel pleasant, and the day somehow appeared more peaceful than usual, but the Stranger still remained vigilant of the situation.

Flaky tugged on the Stranger's arm to get his attention, and gestured to follow her down the small path within the park, which he agreed to do so. They walked silently as before, barely saying anything to each other, and then stopped in the center of the park. The two stood still, sometimes glancing at each other, waiting to see if the other had anything planned.

The Stranger looked down at the basket he was carrying and looked upward to notice a large tree providing plenty of shade from the sun, and was conveniently planted next to a medium-sized lake. The Stranger made a small smiled, and tapped Flaky with his left hand. Flaky looked over to face the Stranger to see his observation.

"Why don't we set up by that large tree there? Seems like a good place for a picnic spot, don't you think?" The Stranger smiled at Flaky, and she answered his question with a nod. The two slowly made the short walk to the tree and stopped directly underneath. The Stranger then held his hand out to stop Flaky from getting closer. "Hold on, let me check something first… okay, I don't see any Ant mounds, so I think we're safe here."

Flaky rolled her eyes with a smile at the Stranger's move to be constantly vigilant for any sign of danger, but appreciated his concern for both of their well-being. The Stranger dropped his bag by the tree and lowered the basket safely onto the ground. Opening it gently, the Stranger pulled out a large blanket and laid it across the ground, making it smooth and flat without any wrinkles.

He placed the basket on the center of the blanket, and gestured his hand to Flaky to sit on the now properly placed blanket. "Ladies first." Flaky smiled and sat down on the soft blanket, and removed the sun hat she dawned earlier. Feeling the heat rising from the summer air, the Stranger also decided to remove his coat and lay it folded on the ground, feeling the warm air with less heat building up.

He sat down on the left side of the blanket and Flaky sat on the right. The Stranger leaned over to open up the basket to pull out a couple of sandwiches neatly wrapped in napkins, and handed Flaky's her slice with a smile. The two sat together a few inches apart, and looked around there area as they ate silently.

Tired of the silence, the Stranger decided to say something nice for the moment. "You know, I first thought this morning would be nothing but destruction and chaos by the time we got here, but it does seem a little peaceful out today…" The Stranger took a bite, swallowed, and looked down to his legs as he sat Indian-style. "I'm sorry about being very cautious this morning. I hope you understand it's only because I am trying my best to protect everyone every second of my life. It's a job that I have to stay serious with, but I guess I can take it too far." The Stranger looked over to see Flaky eating, but was giving the Stranger a nice smile. She understood completely.

The Stranger looked out across from the lake to notice a variety of unique looking Tree Friends walking together, whom all seem to be on a nice romantic morning together. The Stranger made a small chuckle and swallowed his bite. "Lots of couples out today… so what does that make us right now?" The Stranger looked over to see Flaky chuckle at his remark of the situation, though secretly blushed as well.

After the Stranger finished his sandwich, he had a plan to help keep the conversation moving. "Hey, I have been here for about three months, and your name, along with Petunia, are the only ones I know. Since we have some people walking around, you think you can help me know some of the local people?" Flaky finished her sandwich, and gave a wide smile as she moved closer to the Stranger. He nodded his head, happy to see she was willing to aid him.

He looked back out across the lake to notice the variety of couples walking around. He instantly noticed Petunia, the blue skunk, whom he already knew. Next to her happened to be the orange beaver with a construction hat who lacked hands, which he saw blush at the sight of her in the Stranger's second day in the world at the cafe.

He pointed his finger towards the couple and leaned his head towards Flaky. "Okay, that blue skunk I know is Petunia. So who's that orange beaver?" The Stranger looked over to see Flaky ponder how to answer with her language, and came up with an idea. She took out her hand, and tapped on it at a slow pace. Between each tap, she said the letter 'D,' and said this multiple times.

The Stranger scratched his head and repeated the motion. "Hand… D… Hand… D…" The Stranger than snapped his fingers. "I got it, Handy!" Flaky smiled and nodded her head. The Stranger, though, looked over to see the beaver and had a confused look on his face. "But… he has no hands." Flaky shrugged at the statement, confused as well about his name.

Continuing onward, the Stranger looked out to see another couple: a pink chipmunk and a yellow rabbit. The Stranger pointed his finger towards the said couple. "Okay, that pink chipmunk's name; do you know it?" The Stranger looked over to Flaky, and noticed she was giggling for some reason. "What are you giggling about? I am just asking what her…" The Stranger placed his hand over his face in embarrassment. "Let me guess… its Giggles, isn't it?" The Stranger looked up to see Flaky nod, showing he was indeed correct. The Stranger looked out to see the pink chipmunk doing exactly what its name was: giggling. "Yeah, if she stopped dying in front of me all the time, she would be fun to be with."

The Stranger then went to point his finger to the yellow rabbit. "Alright, the yellow rabbit with those pink bunny slippers, you got a name for-" The Stranger stopped speaking as Flaky moved the Stranger's arm upward to lean in close to rub against his right side, and let his arm wrap around her. She brought herself in close and went to cuddle against him while having his arm holding her around her back and laying on her right shoulder.

The Stranger's face turned into a noticeable bright red, and looked around to see if anyone was around to notice. While he did give Flaky a friendly hug once in a while, he never had Flaky come on to him this way before, especially this close. The Stranger looked at her with his eyes wide open, and stuttered as he tried to find words to answer the question. "Um… i-i-is it… um… uh… C-C-Cuddles?" Flaky nodded her head slowly as she rested herself against the Stranger. However, instead of moving back to her spot, she stayed right next to the Stranger, still cuddling on his right side and shoulder.

The Stranger sat and watched her just lay her body against him, and was in a loss of thought on wondering exactly what he was supposed to do now. He then looked over to observe Flaky's quills, which were still sharp to the point. Curious about trying something different, he moved his hand from her back up to the top of Flaky's quills, and began to slowly run down at a flat angle against them. Surprisingly, taking the slower approach and moving at an angle did not cause him to sustain any cuts, and actually moved through like hair. Somewhat enjoying the moment, he continued to weave his hand through her quills up and down slowly, brushing off some of the small white flakes and pulling the hair-like quills gently at certain intervals, which made Flaky sigh in pleasure.

The two sat together in the same position for almost thirty minutes, with the Stranger brushing Flaky's hair-like quills and Flaky lying her body against his right shoulder. The Stranger then felt even more flustered as Flaky moved in closer, getting more tighter against his side as she laid her left hand on his leg. The Stranger's face went red again and was having an inappropriate feeling beginning to arise on him... at least a feeling that should stay in the bedroom and not be shown in public.

To avoid any embarrassment, and to keep up with the movement of the day, the Stranger leaned over to Flaky's left ear. "Um… Flaky…" Her eyes slowly opened after closing them for some time. She then received a burst of energy after she realized what she was currently doing, and instantly brought herself away from the Stranger and moved herself over slightly, brushing her quills and looking away while her face turned red of pure embarrassment. The Stranger laughed at the sight. "Oh come on, you looked adorable!" Flaky looked at him with a little smirk, and made a little chuckle of her own.

The Stranger leaned back and placed his arms behind him to prevent his back from falling to the ground. He sighed in relief, and looked up to the sky. "You know, today is a great day to be out here. I'm glad I listened to you, Flaky, you really know what to do to calm me down whenever I'm troubled. Thank you." The Stranger looked over to see Flaky, still a little red from earlier, but was giving a warm smile, and nodded her head.

She spoke clearly with a short set of words again. "You're welcome."

The two looked forward once more to see the beautiful reflection of the lake, enjoying the beauty nature was offering them this moment. The silence was broken again, however, not by speech, but the sound of a little duckling. The Stranger sat up and smiled at the sight of a cute little duck walking slowly up to them, not caring about the fact that these two creatures were not its mother. It continued to make little quacking sounds as it walk straight up onto the blanket they sat on.

The Stranger leaned in and grabbed the baby duckling softly, holding it gently and brought it up to Flaky to see. "Flaky, look, it's a-"

"AHHHHHHHH"

Flaky jumped to her feet in a heartbeat, and made a sprint to hide behind the tree they sat underneath from. She was shaking in fear, despite the day going so peacefully, and was faced with once again her paranoia of some of the littlest things being dangerous.

The Stranger was confused about the situation, worried about the day to turn south because of a little duck. "Flaky, what's wrong? It's just a little duckling. Come over here." Flaky shook her head quickly and still hid behind the tree. The Stranger sighed in disbelief, sad to see Flaky in such a position, but decided not to give up. "Flaky, listen to me. I promise it will not harm you, I will not let it harm you. Just come over here slowly so I can show you."

Flaky was still scared of the sight of the little duck, but she trusted the Stranger's word. She walked out from behind the tree and took baby steps towards the Stranger, taking brief pauses every time the duck made a sound. She got up right next to the Stranger, and was getting a very clear view of the creature.

The Stranger then safely placed the duck in his right hand and used his left to grab Flaky's right hand by surprise, making her jumped and yell quietly. The Stranger turned to face her with a serious expression. "Flaky, it's okay, you're doing fine. Just give me your hand." Flaky was getting even more scared, her heartbeat going to levels that should not be reached, but slowly let the Stranger guide her hand down next to him.

With the right distance between her hand and the duck, the Stranger placed the duck carefully on the hand of Flaky, and let it rest gently on it. He then brought Flaky's other hand next to the one holding the duck, and placed them together so the duck at plenty of room to rest in.

Flaky's eyes slowly began to not show fear, and was being replaced with the expression of happiness. As the Stranger had his hands around hers, the duck nested inside her set of hands, and she felt amazed. The fear inside was slowly fading away, and was now holding something she thought would harm her.

The Stranger smiled at Flaky, easily noticing her fear being washed away. He felt like he had to say something, so he sat on his left knee and stood on his right foot facing the duck. "Flaky, I know we live in a scary and dangerous world, in which there are plenty of things to be scared of. Believe me, I get scared to, especially when I'm out here. When I'm in this world doing my job to save all of you, I get scared thinking that I may fail and have someone die in my hands, or that today may be my last day as I get killed by something I did not expect. Fear is a natural feeling that sadly exists in all of us, which is okay because it is normal to be scared of a few dangerous things, as it keeps us alert and prevents us from doing something that may be too dangerous, or perhaps stupid, that could get us hurt."

The Stranger leaned in closer as he still kept his eye on the duck. "But there are some things in life that we have no need to be afraid of. In fact, it is these things that we aren't afraid of that we should look after for. Some of these things can make us happy, and it's something worth protecting. Some of the small things in life, like this little duckling here, can represent something bigger that we must protect as it means a lot in life, which is something we don't need to be afraid of."

The Stranger slowly brought Flaky down to him and looked straight into her eyes. "Flaky, I promise I will not let anything hurt you as we stay in this world, and I will do everything in my power to get you and everyone else home. That is a promise I intend to keep, and you can trust me on fulfilling it."

Flaky gave a happy smile hearing the Stranger's promise. It meant a lot to her to hear someone so willing to protect not just her but everyone else, something she has now begun to realize being alive for so long that it was needed from the very beginning, and she is glad that it happened to be the Stranger to accomplish this.

The two then looked down to watch at the little duckling again, who was now resting silently in the hands of Flaky.

That one day in the park alone with Flaky gave the Stranger a new view on his stance in the fight. He did not want to do it just for himself, he also wanted it to free everyone else from the hands of an evil mad man. He realized that day that these people were just as innocent and scared as he was and deserved every right to return home just like him.

The Stranger did not agree with the mad man's words. He was not selfish, and he was not doing this just for himself. He wasn't going to use innocent people for his gain, not like what the mad man does for his entertainment. He was human, and he was not going to let some random person control his decisions or describe who he is. He was himself, and he planned to do only good for the betterment of everyone.

But something else came up to him that day too, something that has bothered him since the day he started working in Flaky's house. With every passing day he spends with Flaky, the more he feels more attached to her. Not in the sense of a physical relationship, but one that was emotional and symbolic. She started becoming this figure to him as a reason to fight: to remove the fear that laid in everyone in this world. Flaky began to mean more to him than just a friend.

However, that situation has bothered him as well. Being with her has made him happy to be alive, having a reason to live, and a person that supports him by his side every step of the way. He did not deny the fact that he was starting to have more than just friendly feelings for her, and he wondered if she had the same thoughts. Some days, the Stranger wanted to say something, having this want to further their relationship beyond just two friends.

The Stranger knew, however, it would never work. Not because he was scared to admit it (which he was indeed scared) but because he wanted to protect her. His life was a dangerous one, involving the risks of dying to save another and be part of a fight that is only between him and the mad man. The Stranger knew that, if he and Flaky got any closer, she could be more vulnerable to damage as she could get herself involved in the fight.

And he did not want her anywhere near this fight. She has no need or reason to be a part of it, and if she did get involved, she would most certainly die. The last thing the Stranger would ever want is to have Flaky die in a battle that he caused and something she did not have to be a part of. He did not want her to die because of his actions. And the only way to do that was to stay away from her as much as possible.

He did indeed love her, which is why he never bothered to admit it. It was better if she never got involved with him, at least there she was guaranteed more safety. But he did know one thing with this entire situation: he is determined to get her home, and that is what he plans to do, even if he must fight alone.

He closed the door slowly, and whispered through the cracks, "I promise."

The door was closed without making a sound, and the Stranger took a deep but silent breath as he walked back to his room. He entered slowly and quickly aimed for his bed, falling face first on top of the covers. Too tired to move anymore, the Stranger rested his head on the pillow, and went into yet another deep slumber.

The Stranger saw himself in the middle of Happy Tree Park, with no visible Tree Friends in the area, only the sounds of birds chirping and the rustling breeze of fall. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to notice Flaky, dawning a warm smile. The Stranger was happy to see her, and reached out his hand to hold hers, which she did without hesitation.

The two walked together in the lone park as no Tree Friends could be seen. They walked silently, being happy just to have each other's company. The Stranger then stopped and looked down with a nervous expression on his face. Flaky noticed and tugged on his arm to find out what was wrong. He turned his head to look at her directly, and spoke softly.

"Flaky, there is something I have been meaning to tell you for some time, but I never knew when it would be best to do it or if I would ever have the courage to do it. But I feel like I can say it right now." Flaky leaned in closer, awaiting to hear the Stranger's statement. "Flaky, I just want to tell you…"

The Stranger looked up and his eyes widen in horror. Just a close distance away from them was something dark, something huge in size, and something heading directly towards them. Getting a very close observation, it was a sight that scared the Stranger more than anything he had ever saw before.

It was a giant bear, huge in size covered with black fur that was surround by an aura of black ash and smoke. Its teeth were like razor blades, its eyes having an evil emerald glow, and its claws sharp enough to slice anything with a simple touch. It roared loudly, shaking the entire world and getting Flaky's attention instantly as she screamed in fear.

The Stranger instantly ran the thought in his head: was this the monster?! There was no time to question it; monster or not, it was not friendly, nor did it look easy to defeat. There was only one move they could make.

"RUN!"

The Stranger grabbed onto Flaky's left hand tightly and ran straight towards the city, hoping to lose the giant bear there. The bear could see two pieces of flesh moving, perfect for the taking. It made a dash for them, catching up to them fast with its huge legs that provided it to move far distances.

As the two ran, the sky turned red and dark, and the city morphed into destruction, with buildings on fire and debris lying across the streets. They ran through alleyways and took turns across streets, but the giant bear just jumped over obstacles or destroyed buildings completely to clear a path. There was nowhere the two could hide.

Their futile attempt to escape led them to the base of the giant tree that stood tall in the center of Happy Tree Town, with nowhere else to run. The two turned around swiftly with fear in their eyes as they saw the giant dark bear walking towards them, sporting a face of pure evil with its glowing emerald eyes and teeth that were drooling with blood.

"Flaky, get behind me!" The Stranger got in front of Flaky, letting her hide behind him. The Stranger stood in a defensive stance, ready for its next move. He believed that the giant bear would attack and kill him, leaving Flaky alone to survive. But the bear was somehow not interested into the Stranger, and raised its huge right paw to whack the Stranger to the side, throwing him a good distance away from Flaky and the giant black bear.

The Stranger landed on the ground far from Flaky, and got up to his feet quickly as he began to hyperventilate in fear. He began to run back to his original position to see another horrific sight.

The bear was now standing on its two hind legs, and was slowly morphing into the size of a Tree Friend with the shape of a regular bear. It reached down to the size of Flaky, and the aura around it flashed with red and black smoke. It opened its eyes once more to continue revealing the emerald glow that placed fear into Flaky's heart, and placed an evil grin to show its sharp teeth.

The Stranger continued to sprint, going as fast as he can to reach Flaky in time. "Don't you fucking touch her! Don't hurt her you bastard!" He tried to make it in time, but he knew he would not make it.

The dark bear pulled out a sharp Bowie knife out of its body, stained with countless amounts of blood that came from millions of innocent lives. He grabbed Flaky by the throat with his left hand, and threw her hard onto the ground, laughing menacingly as she was hurt. He reached down to grab her by the top of her head, and made her sit on her trembling knees as she silently pleaded to herself to not die.

The Stranger stood straight in front of the two, seeing Flaky whimper in horror as the black bear held the knife to her back. The bear looked up to see the Stranger, and gave an evil grin and slow nod.

"NO! DON'T-"

The bear slid the knife deep into her back, causing Flaky to scream and choke in pain, and slowly die as the knife dug deeper into her body, spurting blood behind. The bear then slide the knife out by letting the body fall over, revealing a huge gaping hole gushing out blood that was left by the knife. The Stranger stared in horror at the sight of Flaky's death, and looked back to see the bear preparing itself in a pouncing position. The Stranger took a few steps back, and was suddenly jumped by the murderous bear, and was going to kill him just like Flaky.

"FLAKY!"

The Stranger sat straight up out of his bed, breathing fast and heavily as he sweat in fear. He looked around quickly, realizing it was only a dream. Flaky opened the door quickly to notice the Stranger sitting in fear. She walked over and placed her hand on the Stranger's shoulder, trying to calm him down.

The Stranger looked to see Flaky still healthy and alive, which made him feel relieved to see her. He shook his head as he still took heavy breaths. "Sorry, Flaky… it was just… just a bad dream."

Flaky was skeptical of the Stranger's remark, but decided to agree with it. She got up and gestured the Stranger to come with her down stairs, which he nodded his head to show he will come soon. She exited his bedroom and he lowered his head as he shook nervously.

"Oh dear Lord, let it be just a dream."