Jaune Arc: Goosebumps Storyteller

by vanquish356

Jaune always did love telling stories, especially to his younger sisters. He even had a book filled with cheesy horror stories that his sisters loved. But after coming to Beacon, he thought he would never tell stories again. However, that wasn't the case when Ruby began asking him for stories, soon followed by Nora. Little did he know that this would cause a domino effect.

3. Chapter 3

Jaune Arc: Goosebumps Story Teller

Chap 3: The House of No Return

'That was a nice meal.' I thought as I finished my lunch and took a sip of my soda.

Currently, I am in Vale trying out a new corner burger shop that recently opened. It was Monday, and the weather was cool but warm. So, naturally, since there were no classes today, I decided to head into Vale and enjoy the day. Typically, I would have gone with one of my friends or teammates unless I needed some alone time. However, Pyrrha and Ren were still away and won't be back for a while. Nora was with Team Rwby, Coco, and Velvet back at Beacon in detention. For what reason, I don't know. All I do know is that Ms. Goodwitch was at Team Rwby's dorm furious and yelling. However, despite everyone being busy, I wasn't alone.

"How are the bones, Zwei?" I asked, smiling as he gnawed on the bones I gave him. He gave a bark before returning to his food.

Before I left for Vale, Ruby asked if I could watch over Zwei while she was in detention. And before I could answer, she raced off to the detention room, leaving me with Zwei. Looking towards him, he happily barked before running circles around me. Chuckling, I let him follow me to the bullheads and Vale. Figuring he must have been hungry, I asked for some chicken legs to give to Zwei.

'Still not sure he's a normal dog.' I thought as I took out my storybook.

Perhaps it was just the blood rushing to my head when Yang had me upside down, but I could have sworn Zwei's eyes changed color for a brief moment. Knowing it would be useless to try and prove or think about it any longer, I let out a sigh before opening the book to the last page. Taking out a pen, I started to write down the next story. We stayed like this for what felt like the next hour. Zwei was gnawing on the chicken bones while I continued writing out as much of the next story as possible. Feeling that I had written enough, I closed the book with the pen in it before letting out a content sigh. Looking back at Zwei, I smiled when I noticed that he had curled up into a ball before falling asleep. Chuckling, I leaned back into my seat and stretched before reaching for my soda.

"HEY, JAUNE!" Nora shouted, startling me right before I grabbed my drink. Yet, Zwei merely let out a yawn before stretching.

"Nora, you scared me." I said, trying to calm my beating breath. Once I calmed down enough, I noticed that Nora wasn't alone. Next to her were Ruby, Yang, Blake, and Velvet. "Hey, how was detention."

"Boring." They answered as they sat down across from me. Spotting Ruby, Zwei barked before jumping from his seat and into her arms.

"ZWEI!" Ruby cheered as she hugged him.

"Where's Weiss and Coco?" I asked, curious.

"Weiss is with her sister." Blake answered.

"And Coco is heading to the other side of Vale for some specials she recently saw." Velvet answered. She then noticed that I still had the book out. "What's the book?"

"Oh, it-" I began, but Ruby and Nora cut me off.

"IT CONTAINS THE BEST CHEESY HORROR STORIES WE'VE EVER HEARD!" They shouted, startling Velvet and me. Blake grunted in annoyance while Yang chuckled.

"What kind of stories?" Blake asked, semi-curious but more annoyed and tired.

"The cheesy horror kind. You know, the ones that are bad at scaring you and are just plain cheesy but are so good that you can't help but finish the story or movie." Yang answered.

"How many stories you have, Jaune?" Velvet asked, curious.

"Oh, he has many stories. And some that you won't ever believe." A new voice answered. Looking behind us, we saw a girl with straight black hair and wearing a jean jacket that was roughly around our age walking towards us.

"Oh, hey." I said, smiling when I realized it was a friendly face. But I became curious when I didn't see her brother. "Where's your brother?"

"Randy's back home. He's in pain since his special features are growing." She answered.

"Yeah, that's understandable." I said with a wince. Considering what the special features are, they must be pretty painful.

"What special features?" Blake asked, curious. "Faunus features?"

"Nope." Lucy answered. "Something really special that you probably wouldn't believe if I told you."

"You know, your brother's name seems familiar. But I can't place my finger on it." Yang said, looking Lucy up and down.

"Well, considering Jaune has his special book out. You probably heard my name in one of the stories." She explained.

"Lucy? Randy's sister?" Nora asked.

"That's me. Jaune uses the names of people he knows from back in Arc Town." Lucy explained/lied.

"Did you two grow up together?" Velvet asked with a light glare.

"You could say so. I mostly hung out with my brother, my friend Aaron, and Jaune's two youngest sisters. He did, however, babysit my brother a few times." She answered.

"So, you used their names in your Girl Who Cried Monster story?" Yang asked, curious.

"Yes." I answered before turning to Lucy. "What brings you to Vale?"

"Oh, mom sent me here to pick up a few things and meet up with some special folks who can help me with something I'm struggling with." She answered before looking at her watch. "Well, I have to go now. See you, Jaune. Oh, and by the way. Practically all of Arc Town wants to see you soon."

"Don't worry. I'll visit soon. Tell everyone I said hi." I told her.

"I will." She said before running off. But not before flashing me a smile. However, she made sure to do so while the others were distracted so she could show me her monster fangs. Chuckling, I turned back to the others.

"She seems nice." Velvet said, glaring at Lucy's retreating form.

"Did you actually base that story around her or only used the names?" Nora asked, curious.

"More or less." I lied, not wanting to tell them the truth. At least, not yet.

"Well, since we are all here now and don't have anything else planned for today, how about another story, Jaune?" Yang asked. But before I could answer, Blake cut in.

"You know, it's been a while since I heard a good story apart from the Ninjas of Love series. Plus, a good cheesy horror story sounds nice right now." She said, turning to me.

"What about you, Velvet?" Nora asked.

"Well, I don't like horror stuff as I get scared very easily. But I do enjoy watching those horror movie parodies or the cheesy ones where it's more for laughs and entertainment rather than trying to scare someone." She answered.

"Alright." I said with a sigh as I grabbed the book.

"YES!" Ruby and Nora cheered.

"And since Velvet and Blake are new, how they choose what kind of story I tell." I suggested.

"Fine by me." Yang agreed with Ruby and Nora nodding while Zwei barked. Velvet and Blake looked towards each other before shrugging.

"Do you have a haunted house story?" Blake asked.

"Yes." I answered as I flipped through the book. "How does this sound? Robbie, Lori, and Nathan are part of a club called The Danger Club, of which they are the only members and pride themselves on being the boldest children they know, who will take any dare they are offered. They become interested in Chris Wakely, a new boy in town, and encourage him to join them after he passes the initiation, which is to spend an hour alone in The House of No Return."

"Sounds interesting and original. Sure." Blake answered.

"It does sound interesting. But can we go someplace else to hear it?" Velvet asked.

"Sure." We answered.

Getting up, I paid for my meal before we left the burger shop while discussing where we should go. After a couple of minutes, we decided to head to the park as it had more seats with better shade. But as we neared the park, we felt the winds increase in strength, with the temperature dropping by a few degrees. Yet, we ignored it as it was still relatively warm. However, as we were about to reach the park, the sky suddenly turned dark. Looking up, we noticed that the sky changed from clear to filled with thunderclouds in only a few moments. Knowing that rain was coming, we decided to head back to the airstrip and get on a bullhead to return to Beacon. Unfortunately, we felt our scrolls vibrate as soon we started heading there. Taking them out, we realized that a weather warning had been issued for the impending storm. Feeling some rain already pouring, we began to run towards the nearest shelter we could find as we wouldn't be able to make it to the airstrip in time. Luckily, we quickly found refuge.

"Of all the places we could pick, we had to pick an abandoned house." Yang complained as we shook ourselves dry while Nora and I barricaded the door with a dresser.

"At least we dry and safe now." Ruby said before covering herself with her arms when Zwei shook himself dry. "For the most part."

"True." Yang said, annoyed as she moved to sit on a nearby box. Only to hit her toes against something and let out a small curse. "Dammit. Can we get some light or something?"

"I think we should conserve as much of our scroll's battery as possible." Velvet said as she sat down next to me on the dusty couch.

"We need a light source unless we want to keep bumping into things." Yang countered before cursing again when she hit her foot against a 2x4 piece of wood. "And I doubt that lights still work."

"They most likely don't, but we don't need them anyway. I found some still usable candles. All we need now is some matches or anything to light them." Blake said as she returned with a candelabra. "Anybody has anything we can use?"

"I have some matches." I answered as I reached into my pockets, pulled out some safety matches, and gave them to Blake.

"Why do you have matches?" Velvet asked, curious.

"Let's just say; there was an incident when I was younger that caused me to always have matches on hand." I explained as Blake lit the candles, creating much-needed light and warmth.

"How long do you think the storm will last?" Nora asked, making different shadow puppets with the candle's light.

"The report says that the storm, while fierce, will only last a couple of hours." I answered as I looked at various reports on my scroll before putting it away.

"What should we do in the meantime since we can't use our scrolls?" Yang asked.

"Well, since we have some time, we can listen to Jaune's story." Ruby suggested.

"YES!" Nora cheered as she sat down next to Ruby.

"That would be nice." Velvet said as she moved closer to me. "Especially since there is a nice candlelight."

"You know, I just realized that we're going to listen to a haunted house story inside an abandoned house." Blake commented with a smirk.

"Imagine if it was haunted as well." Yang added, causing the others to chuckle. However, I didn't as I recognized the house and knew who its inhabitants were as I encountered them before. Breathing in, I steeled myself before grabbing my book.

"Alright. Let's begin with the story of The House of No Return." I said as I flipped to the correct page. "We start with a club known throughout the town as The Danger Club. It is comprised of three young kids that pride themselves on being fearless. However, they wanted another member to join and have been trying to recruit others for a long time. Right now, they are hiding in the bushes of the infamous House of No Return..."

Story

We see an old-looking, worn-out house with the moon shining overhead. The house itself is massive and looks to be one created for the sole purpose of having a happy family. However, that was when the house was still being lived in as it had been abandoned for decades. Now, it stands as an imposing structure to anyone near it, with the dense trees and imposing moonlight warning everyone to stay away. Yet, despite the foreboding and almost sinister feeling in the air, there were those still drawn to the house. More specifically, three young friends and whoever they could get to go inside the house.

"How long has he been in there?" A young female voice asked.

"Exactly ten minutes and thirty-one seconds." A young male voice answered.

"I have to admit; he's got guts." A different young male voice added.

On the edge of the house's property, we saw three young kids crawling through some bushes on the ground. One was female while the other two were male, and each seemed to be in their early teens. Once they felt they had a clear view of the door, they stopped moving and continued to wait.

"Looks like Danger Incorporated is gonna have a new member." The male wearing a hat said, sounding non-too pleased about it.

"Not so fast, Nathan. Doug's gotta stay in there for a whole hour." The other male and apparent leader of the group reminded. He then moved his arm to better look at this watch. "He's still got forty-eight minutes and fifty-four seconds to go."

"No one's ever made it past the five-minute mark." Nathan said as he turned back to look at the house's doors.

"He's probably in there taking a nap." The young female said, annoyed and borderline angry. The three teens then got up and moved to sit behind some bushes as a dog's barking could be heard in the distance.

"Hey, give me more seeds." Nathan told the leader.

"I just gave you a whole handful." He said, annoyed as he opened the bag.

"I ate them." Nathan said, causing the leader to sigh before handing him the bag of seeds. But as soon as Nathan grabbed the bag, the three of them were startled by a loud banging that came from the house. Quickly standing up, they began to look for what caused the noise. "What was that?"

"Time." The female asked, annoyed when they realized it was only the window shutters that startled them.

"He just told us." Nathan complained as the leader checked his watch.

"I'm not waiting out here a whole hour." The girl said before walking up to the house, surprising her friends.

"HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Nathan shouted as he and their leader chased after their friend. Reaching the houses, they kneeled behind a bush next to the porch. "You can't let him out."

"Let's admit it. Doug's not scared." The female countered before standing up. But before she could move to the door, the leader grabbed her by the arm.

"No, no, no! Doug has to stay in there for the whole hour." He reminded. "If he makes it, then he's in."

"I hope he doesn't make it. I don't even like him." Nathan commented.

"Neither do I." The female agreed.

"Well, I don't either. But if he makes it, we're stuck with him." The leader added.

"I just want to look inside, see what's he doing." The girl told the others.

"Okay. Go." The leader relented with a sigh.

Satisfied, the girl stood back up and slowly headed to the front door. All the while trying her best to make as little noise as possible. But she also made sure to take her time not to bump into anything as the dim light made it hard to see what was in front of her clearly. Plus, the dogs barking in the distance and the window shutters banging did not help in the slightest. Reaching the top step, she made her way to the wall and slowly moved closer to the doors. The boys, meanwhile, decided to join their friend and made their way up the steps as well.

"I can't see a thing." The girl said as she looked into the door's window but could not see anything due to the woods blocking her view. Moving to the adjacent door, she hoped she could get a better view inside. However, as soon as she placed her face against the window, she jumped away in fright when another face suddenly appeared on the other side of the door. "AAAAAHHHH!"

"SOMEBODY, HELP! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" The person, a young male, screamed as he tried and failed to open the door.

Real World

"Man, the storm is really picking up out there." Yang said when a near-deafening thunderclap sounded right outside the house.

"At least we have shelter, light, snacks, and drinks." Ruby said as Nora helped Yang make sure all the nearby windows were closed and locked.

"And while not much, the candle does provide some-" Blake began before Velvet cut her off.

"Did anybody hear that?" She asked, scared as her eyes darted all over the room.

"No." Everyone else, except Blake, answered.

"What did it sound like?" Blake asked, her cat ears twitching.

'Hopefully not the owners.' I thought, worried.

"Like something banging against something else violently." Velvet answered.

"Possibly just the window shutters banging against the house because of the wind." Yang surmised as she sat back down.

'Yup. The owners sense something.' I thought with a chill going down my spine. 'I should hurry up with the story.'

"Most likely. The house is in poor condition with many things falling apart." Blake agreed.

"Zwei. Calm down; it's only a storm and window shutters causing the noise." Ruby said, trying to calm down Zwei when he started barking towards the stairs.

"Maybe he senses ghosts." Yang said, chuckling, unaware of how right she was.

"Oh, Jaune. Before you continue, can you tell us the names of the Danger club members?" Velvet asked.

"Of course. The girl's name is Lori. The leader is called Robbie, and the other guy is called Nathan." I answered before deciding to add. "Oh, and there's another kid who will be introduced later in the story. Just in case I forget, his name is Chris Wakely. And the kid the appeared in the window and startled Lori is called Doug."

"He was the one who wanted to join the club with the others not liking him?" Blake asked.

"Yes."

"And why does he have to stay inside the house?" Velvet asked.

"To enter the club, one has to go through an initiation test of sorts where you have to spend an hour inside the house." I explained before finding where I left off. "Okay. After Lori stepped back in fear, the Danger Club realized that it was Doug who was screaming in terror.

Story

"HELP! Something's in here. I can't get out! Somebody help me! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!" Doug shouted as he struggled to get the door open.

Yet, none of the kids made a move as they were overcome with shock and confusion. After a few more seconds of struggling, the boy finally managed to open the door. Once open, he immediately ran past the others and away from the house without stopping.

"IT TOUCHED ME- TOUCHED MY FACE! Stay away, you guys. It's in there." Doug warned as he never stopped running away from the house. Still confused, the others slowly walked down the porch, unaware of how deathly quiet it suddenly became. But, as soon as the guy disappeared from view, Nathan turned to the others.

"It touched me. It touched my face." He said in a mocking tone.

"Oh, I knew he wouldn't make it." Robbie said, trying to mask his confusion with a smirk and acting as if he knew everything that would happen.

"They never do." Nathan agreed.

"Good thing. Could you imagine if we had to let him into Danger Incorporated?" Lori asked, relieved.

"Why do we have to let anybody in?" Nathan asked, confused.

"Because we only have three members." Robbie explained.

"Yeah, but there were only three stooges."

"But that wasn't a corporation. A corporation should have a lot of members.

"I guess we have to look for a new member." Lori said, still relived that Doug won't be joining them.

"Someone cool." Nathan added.

"And brave." Robbie also added before pointing to the house, unaware that they were being watched by something inside the house. "Someone who won't freak out in an empty, old house."

"Isn't there one brave kid in this stupid town?" Nathan asked before quickly backpedaling when the other looked at him. "Besides us, of course."

"It touched my face. What do you think he meant?" Lori asked, curious, turning back to the house.

"Oh, he probably just walked into a cobweb or something." Robbie answered with a smirk, thinking it wasn't anything major or actually scary.

"What a chicken." Nathan said, smiling as he shook his head. However, all three of them became scared and startled when a loud banging came from inside the house. And even though they noticed a window shutter banging against the house, they knew that wasn't the cause of the noise. Noticing how deathly quiet it had gotten, plus getting the feeling they were being watched, the three of them finally decided to leave. But as they turned to leave, Nathan searched his pockets and noticed something was missing.

"Hey, where's my money?" He asked as he began to look around with his friends turning around. "I had five lien right here."

"Maybe it fell out when we were shoving Doug into the house." Lori suggested.

"Yeah, it's probably up on the porch." Robbie added while pointing towards the house.

"I had to work hard to get that five lien." Natha complained as he walked towards the porch's steps. Yet, as soon as he reached the base, he stopped dead in his tracks as the dog's barking in the distance and the shudders banging against windows caused fear to creep up his spine. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he turned to his friends and asked. "Why don't you guys help me look for it?"

"Oh, just go get it." Robbie said, annoyed.

"Yeah, don't be a baby." Lori added, equally annoyed.

Steeling himself, Nathan slowly walked up the porch's steps and headed towards the doors. His friends, meanwhile, shook their heads in disbelief as they watched him. Carefully looking around, Nathan soon found his money near the door.

"Oh, great." He said, relieved that he quickly found it.

"Would you hurry up?" Robbie asked, getting impatient.

"I'm coming." Nathan shouted back.

"Let's get out of here." Robbie told Lori as they turned and left.

Sighing, Nathan kneeled and tried to grab his money. However, right before he grabbed it, the door opened with a strange wind sucking the lien into the house. Scared, Nathan stood up and slowly walked back while never taking his eyes off the door. And as soon as he took his third step back, the door suddenly slammed shut.

"HEY, YOU GUYS! WAIT UP!" Nathan shouted as he ran down the steps and after his friends.

Next Day

"But this is your new neighborhood. Don't you want to explore it?" A mother asked her son as they walked down their driveway.

"Not really." Her son, Chris Wakely, answered, smiling.

"Sure you do." His mom said, laughing. "Who knows? You might even meet some new friends here. Come on. Just take a walk, and when you get back, I'll make you some lunch."

"Why don't you just drive me around?" Chris asked, not really wanting to explore the new neighborhood.

"Chris." The mom said, smiling.

"Will you make me a cheeseburger when I get back?" Chris asked, smirking.

"Okay." The mom said, smiling as she knew where this was going.

"With bacon?"

"Always making deals."

"Come on, mom. With bacon."

"Okay. With bacon." The mom said, barely able to contain her laughter and joy. She then patted her son's back. "Now go on."

"All right. See you, mom." Chris said, smiling as he walked away from the house. Reaching the sidewalk and unsure where to go next, he decided to simply go across town. But as he walked past the next block, he noticed some local kids resting on one of the benches. "Hey."

"Hey! Check it out." Nathan said, sitting up on top of the bench.

"He's the new kid." Lori said as she and Robbie stood up and walked to the center of the sidewalk.

"Yeah. He probably doesn't have any friends." Robbie said, a plan already forming in his head.

"No friends. The perfect candidate for Danger Incorporated." Lori said, smiling.

"I don't know. He doesn't look very brave." Nathan said as they began to follow Chris. "If you're in Danger Incorporated, you have to be brave."

"True, but if he's not, it'd sure be fun scaring him." Robbie said, a devious smirk on his face.

"HEY!" Lori shouted, getting Chris's attention. "Your name is Chris, right?"

"Yeah. Chris Wakely."

"I'm Lori, and this is Nathan and Robbie."

"Hi."

"Listen." Robbie said as he slung his arm around Chris's shoulders. "You're new in town, right?"

"Yeah. Just moved in last week." Chis answered as they resumed their walk.

"So, you're probably looking for some new friends, someone to hang out with."

"Sure, that'd be great."

"Do you want to join our organization?" Lori asked.

"Danger Incorporated." Nathan added.

"We have room for one more member." Robbie finished.

"Danger Incorporated? What is it?" Chris asked, smirking and curious.

"It's a club for brave people." Nathan answered.

"Oh, well, I'm not very brave."

"You like horror movies, don't you?" Lori asked, shocked as she walked to stand in front of Chris.

"No. Actually, I cover my eyes during the scary parts." Chris explained while taking a step closer to Lori, unaware of Nathan and Robbie snickering behind him.

"Well, you don't have to be that brave." Robbie said as he placed his arm around Chris's shoulders again. "You just have to do one thing."

"What's that?" Chris asked as they continued walking.

Half an Hour Later

"Just one hour. If you can make it for one hour, you're in." Nathan said as he came to a stop in front of the gate.

"They call it The House of No Return." Robbie said as they walked through the open, rusted gates. "Go on."

"Years ago, a young couple moved into town. A beautiful young woman and her husband." Lori began with Robbie continuing.

Flashback

'He built this house for her.'

We see the House of No Return in its prime condition. A door soon opens with a man entering soon, followed by his wife.

'Their dream house, a place to raise their child.'

After examining the room, the man and woman embraced each other in a passionate hug.

End Flashback

"But he made a mistake in the construction of the house." Lori said as they gazed upon the house. Even during daylight, the house emitted a foreboding aura to everyone near it. "Their child broke through a weak spot in the floor.

"And fell to her death." Robbie continued.

"The couple were so sad; they slowly went mad." Nathan finished, his voice saying that he didn't care and only wanted to scare Chris.

Flashback

We see the shadow of a man and woman on the wall cast by the lit candles of the room. The woman's shadow showed her losing it while the man was trying to comfort her. All the while, the sounds of thunder could be heard outside.

'Days, weeks, months went by, and the couple never came outside.'

Yet, after a while, the man slowly started to give up.

End Flashback

"One day, the police came. They entered the house. The couple were dead. Their bodies were taken away, and the house was sealed up." Lorrie finished.

"Days later, children from the neighborhood started to disappear." Robbie said, causing Chris to stiffen up.

"Some say they were kidnapped. Others say that the ghosts of the couple took them." Nathan added.

"But it's probably just an empty, old house." Lori said, shrugging.

"So go on in, Chris, and then you can be our new member." Robbie said.

"I don't think so."

"Come on. We'll be right out here." Lori assured.

Have you done it?"

"Uh, done what?"

"Stayed in there for an hour." Chris answered while waving his hand at the house.

"Well, no, but-" Nathan began, unsure of exactly how to answer.

"But, well, we don't have to, you see, 'cause, uh, we started the organization." Robbie stuttered, trying to hide the fact that they were also scared of the house.

"We already know we like danger." Nathan quickly added.

"It's our middle name." Lori added.

"Come on, man." Nathan said, getting impatient.

"We think you're a really cool guy. We want you in our club." Lori told him. "Huh, Robbie?"

"You the man, Chris."

"That's great, but I don't think so. I'll see you guys later." Chris said as he slid past Robbie and left the property.

Real World

"What was that?" Ruby asked, scared as the sound of something heavy moving across the floor greeted our ears.

"I-I'm not sure." Velvet answered, also scared as Zwei's barking became louder.

"Could just be the winds as they seem strong enough to move a night table." Yang said as the winds roared outside. Yet, we could tell that she was uncertain.

"I doubt that." Blake said, ears twitching as she strained her cat ears to see if she could detect if anything else were here with us. But after a few seconds and hearing nothing else, everyone else calmed down. "Seems like Yang was right, and it was only the wind."

"Let's get back to the story then." Velvet said.

"Yeah, I want to see what happens the Lori, Robbie, and Nathan as I don't like them." Nora said.

"Yeah, I can already see what's about to happen. But I'm curious about what will happen to them later in the story." Yang agreed.

'Something that I hope doesn't happen to us.' I thought as goosebumps formed on my skin. "Anyway. After failing to convince Chris to go inside the house, Danger Incorporated returned to their original spot for the rest of the day. Once it became night, they went to one of their homes to watch a movie and plan out a meeting."

Story

"Danger Incorporated is now in session. Is there any new business?" Robbie asked unenthusiastically. We see an ordinary house with the lights on in one room. Entering the house, we see the three kids sitting on the couch while enjoying some snacks while watching a movie. However, after receiving no answer, Robbie sat straight up. "You mean there's no new business?"

"This is the most boring meeting I've been in." Nathan complained, with a bowl of popcorn in his lap.

"What are you talking about? They are all boring?" Lori asked, sitting up as Robbie placed his hand on his forehead in frustration.

"We need a new member." He said while getting up from the couch, causing Lori to laugh.

"We haven't had a new member since you started this stupid organization." Lori reminded. "You know, that Chris has a lot of nerve turning us down."

"Yeah. He is kind of stuck up, isn't he?"

"Yeah, new kid. I'm a chicken. La-di-da." Nathan mocked, acting like a chicken while Lori laughed.

"Maybe we should teach him a lesson." Lori suggested.

"Yeah. Lesson number one: How to be brave." Robbie said, smiling. Seeing that the others agreed with the plan, he then went over to the phone to call Chris's house.

Chris's house

We see Chri's mom reaching for the phone as the sound of men speaking over the radio could be heard behind her.

"Hello. Yes, hold on, please." Chris's mom said, smiling before turning around. "Chris?"

"For me?" He asked, curious while putting down his book and getting up from the chair.

"Someone named Robbie."

'It's currently 71 degrees. In sports, the international-'

"Hello?" Chris asked, taking the phone while his mother went to the table. "Yeah, sure. That'd be great. All right, I'll see you there. Okay, bye."

"Robbie?" Chris's mom asked as she placed some dishes in the sink while Chris hung up the phone and headed towards the door.

"Yeah, it's this kid I met down the street. He's got two friends, Lori and Nathan. They want me to go hang out with them at the mall."

"Well, I'm glad you're making new friends already."

"Yeah. Maybe this place isn't as bad as I thought it was."

"You see? I told you."

"All right. I'm gonna walk over to Robbie's."

"Chirs."

"Yeah, mom?" He asked, walking back over to his mother.

"They're nice kids?" She asked, worried.

"Yeah, they're alright. I don't think they are too smart, but they're okay. I'll see you later." He answered before kissing her on the cheek.

"Yeah. Bye-bye."

"Bye, mom." With that said, Chris exited the house and went over to Robbie's house, unaware of what was about to happen.

One Hour Later

We see that there's a full moon tonight as a dark cloud passes the moon.

"So, is this a cool mall?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, it's cool, alright." He answered as they moved past some trees that were only visible due to the moon's light. "This way."

"This must be a shortcut, right?"

"Yeah." The others answered after looking at each other. Smirking, they continued guiding Chris towards their destination. But after a few more minutes, Chirs turned to them, confused.

"You sure this is the way to the mall?" He asked.

"Listen to this. New kid in town, and he's telling us." Nathan said, smirking.

"Really." Lori said, shaking her head as they heard a dog barking nearby. After a couple more seconds, they reached the gate entrance of The House of No Return. When Chris saw the moon creepily peeking over the imposing figure of the house, he felt chills go down his spine.

"Let's cross the street, all right?" He asked, nervous, not wanting to get closer to the house.

"Why?" Robbie asked.

"That place freaks me out." Chris answered while patting Robbie's shoulder, unaware of the others moving behind him.

"NOW!" Robbie shouted as he and Nathan grabbed Chris and dragged him through the gates as Lori opened them.

"WAIT!" Chris shouted, but Robbie silenced him by placing his hand over Chris's mouth.

"Come on." Robbie said as they continued to drag Chris to the house.

"LET ME GO! HELP! HELP ME! HELP!" Chris shouted, hoping that someone would hear him. After a couple more seconds, they were on the house's porch. "LET ME GO!"

"GET THE DOOR!" Robbie ordered. Nathan let go of Chris and quickly opened the door.

"HELP! HELP!" Chirs continued shouting as Nathan grabbed him again and helped Robbie bring him into the house.

"Don't worry, Chris. All you gotta do is stay in there for a whole hour." Robbie struggled to say as they tried to force Chris into the house.

"Yeah. Then we can see how brave you are." Nathan added.

"You can be our newest member."

"We know you can do it." Lori assured. After a few more seconds of struggling, they finally managed to force Chris into the house.

"Bye-bye." Robbie said as they closed the door right as Chris got up from the floor.

"GUYS, LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT, GUYS! COME ON! NOW! LET ME OUT!" Chris demanded as he banged on the door and tried to open it but couldn't as the others were holding it shut.

Real World

"Called it." Yang said, getting my attention. "Knew they were going to toss him into the house against his will."

"Hopefully, he can escape and never see them again." Nora said, unaware of how right she was.

"Yeah, hope- ZWEI CALM DOWN!" Ruby began before shouting when Zwei jumped from her arms and started barking wildly towards the stairs.

"What's wrong with-" Blake began but was cut off when we heard a door slam open with extreme force.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" Velvet shouted, scared as a chilling aura filled the room.

"P-probably the w-wind." Yang answered, uncertain.

"I doubt that, especially since the wind died down not too long ago." I worriedly said as fear crept up my spine as I knew exactly what was happening and would happen soon. Gulping down my fear, I picked up where I left off. "Chris tried desperately to open the door while begging for them to let him out. Unfortunately, they didn't listen and held the door shut, all the while laughing their asses off."

Story

"IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Chris shouted as he tried in vain to open the doors. "COME ON! OPEN UP!"

"I think it's funny." Robbie said, laughing as he and Nathan continued to hold the door shut. However, they were unaware of Lori looking around the house as she felt an eerie feeling come over her.

"YOU GUYS ARE REAL JERKS; YOU KNOW THAT?" Chris shouted.

"WE'LL LET YOU OUT IN ONE HOUR!" Nathan reminded.

Knowing that he wasn't going to be able to open the door, Chris gave up and turned around. As he began looking around the room, he could feel his heart rate rapidly increasing. The moonlight shone through the cracks in the window, causing all the furniture to have eerily creepy shadows. Seeing some steps nearby, Chris made his way over and checked to see if anyone or anything was there. Thankfully, all he saw were cobwebs and menacingly looking shadows. But what kept him on edge was the strange, almost soul-wrenching noises that came from around the house. It sounded as if someone or something was clearing the path so it could meet him. Hearing something thud right next to him, Chris rapidly back away to the doors and tried to open them again but failed.

"GUYS! LET ME OUT!" He shouted as he yanked on the handles with all his might. "OPEN UP! COME ON! OPEN UP! THERE'S SOMEONE IN HERE!"

"Maybe we shouldn't do this." Lori said, regretting everything as she felt something ominous about the house.

"No. It's just his imagination." Robbie dismissed as he kept the doors shut.

"I know, but-"

"COME ON! OPEN UP, PLEASE!" Chris begged, sounding as if he might break down any moment.

"Fifty-five more minutes, and then we'll let you out." Robbie mocked, barely able to contain his laughter.

"And then you'll be a member of Danger Incorporated." Lori said, completely regretting everything at this point.

"Guys." Chris said, trying his best not to break down in tears.

Seeing that they weren't going to let him out, Chris let out a sigh before moving away from the door. Looking around the room, he made sure no one else was with him before moving to sit on a nearby chair. If he was going to be stuck here for an hour, he might as well get as comfy as he possibly could. However, as he moved away, on the other side of the door, the other had their ears placed against the door to try and hear what Chris was doing. Unfortunately, it proved difficult as the dog's barking seemingly grew louder by the second.

"All right, Chris. Calm down. Old houses make noises. That's just what old houses do." He said as he leaned against the doorframe.

"Do you think he's okay?" Lori asked, worried.

"Hmm." Robbie said, straining his ears to try and hear anything. Meanwhile, Chris turned around and headed towards the nearby chair. Seeing that it was covered in cobwebs, he patted it and recoiled in slight disgust at how much dust flew.

"Gross." He said as he removed the cobwebs before sitting down. Yet, he could not relax as he kept hearing the sounds of wood creaking all around him. "Hello? Is anybody there?"

But only the sounds of chains jiggling and a door creaking open answered his question. Although, he did get scared when a bat came out of nowhere, flew right above his head, and started attacking him.

"Go away." Chris shouted while flailing his arms around. After a couple of seconds, the bat finally had enough and flew away. Breathing hard, Chris stood up from the floor and moved to lean against the wall.

"I'm just going to stand here against this wall. That way, nothing can sneak up on me. I'm just going stand here." He said as he tried to slow his heart rate. Raising his arm, Chris checked his watch and saw that he still had fifty-five more minutes to go before he could leave. But as he checked the time, he failed to notice that the other had opened the door slightly.

"I think he gave up." Robbie told the others.

"He already stayed in there longer than anyone ever did." Nathan reminded.

"I guess he's going to be our new member." Lori said, still worried.

"Hey, Chris has got a long time to go, all right?" Robbie reminded. "A long time."

Real World

"I doubt he would even want to hang out with them afterward." Nora said, snapping me from the book. Looking towards her, I saw that she was on edge as her eyes darted all over the room.

"If I were in the position, those kids would be having a very personal meeting with Ember and Celica." Yang said, slamming one fist into her other hand. Yet, I could tell that she was also on edge as we could now see our breath even though it was not cold enough.

"OKAY, ZWEI! WHAT IS-" Ruby began, about to scold Zwei, who had not stopped barking but stopped when a mysterious voice announced itself.

'We're getting ready.'

"What was that?" Velvet asked, scared as Nora, Yang, Blake, and Ruby got their weapons out. Figuring the voice was what Zwei was barking at, we all turned to the stairs and waited. However, after a couple of minutes and nothing showing up, we relaxed and sat back down. Yet, we remained on edge, especially me since I knew that we only had minutes to get out of here.

"The rain is letting up. We should probably leave as soon as it does." Blake said after a moment while lighting another set of candles.

"Agreed." We all said while continuing to look around the room.

"Alright. After checking his watch again, Chris saw that he had forty-five more minutes to go until he could leave. Not wanting to get taken by surprise again, he walked towards the wall again and leaned his back against it.

Story

Looking around the room, Chris wondered what he could do to pass the time. However, since he had nothing else on him and did not want to leave his spot, he started to whistle. But, not even a second later, he heard chains jingling again, followed by a door opening from above. Yet, before he could look up, he was screamed when he heard something shatter right behind him. Looking down, Chris realized that the vase had fallen from its pedestal. But before Chris could examine it, he froze in shock when he saw a dustpan and broom floating towards him to clean up the mess. As if that wasn't enough, a loud crash sounded next to him, causing him to run back to the stairs. Hearing something creaking, Chris looked to his left and saw the bird from a cuckoo clock slowing coming out. But, to Chris's horror, it slowly turned to face him.

"Beware the House of No Return." It warned before returning inside the clock.

Not sure what to make of this, Chris looked up one last time before turning around. However, he froze in his tracks again when he saw a large wooden board placed against the door and nailed in place. Yet, what caused all the color in Chris's face to drain was what he heard next.

'Don't be afraid, dear child. We're coming. We're coming. We're coming for you.'

Not wanting to stick around, Chris bolted for one of the nearby windows to escape. Only to see that he couldn't do that as something moved the bookcase in front of the window. Backing up, Chris ran to the front door and tried to pry the wooden board off.

'We're coming. We're coming. We're coming for you.'

Failing to get the wood to even budge, Chris stepped away and tried to figure another way to escape. But unfortunately, it quickly dawned on him that he was trapped. Deciding to confront whatever was speaking, he moved back to the wall and looked up the stairs.

'We're here.'

Gulping down his fear, Chris looked up the steps and saw something that caused him to scream louder than he ever had before in his life.

Outside the House

"WHAT?" Robbie asked, scared as he and Nathan tried to catch their breaths after Lori suddenly screamed.

"Nothing, I just wanted to make sure you were awake."

"Real funny." Nathan said, annoyed as they got comfy on the ground again.

"What time is it, anyway?" Lori asked, curious and still worried.

"Five more seconds." Robbie answered while checking his watch. "Four, three, two, one. Let's go get him."

Smiling, the three stood up and headed towards the house.

"All right, Chris. You made it. You're now a member of Danger Incorporated." Robbie said, smiling as they reached the door. Only to become confused when the door wouldn't open.

"Hey, Chris. Open up." Nathan shouted as Robbie looked through the window to see if he could see Chris.

"What's he doing?" Lori asked, confused.

"I don't know." Robbie answered before turning back to the door and banging on it. "CHRIS! OPEN UP!"

"What should we do?" Nathan asked.

"Break the door down. Ready? On three." Robbie answered. Nathan and Lori rolled their eyes yet got ready. "One. Two. Three."

*BANG*

"Again." Robbie said after failing the first try. "One. Two. Three."

They managed to force open the door this time. Entering the house, they began to look around as they had never actually been inside before. However, Lori quickly spotted something that confused her.

"Hey, check this out." She said, picking up and showing the others the wooden board that kept the door shut.

"Why would Chris board up the door?" Nathan asked, confused as he took the wooden board from Lori.

"Maybe he didn't." Robbie said, looking towards the stairs.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lori asked.

"I don't know." Unsure of what to do next, the three of them decided to explore the house to try and find Chris.

"CHRIS!? CHRIS!?" Robbie shouted as they entered the next room.

"Man, this is getting weird." Nathan nervously said as he looked around the room.

"He's probably playing a trick on us." Lori said, annoyed. "CHRIS?"

"YO! CHRIS!" Nathan shouted.

"Well, he's probably just hiding." Robbie said, trying to mask his fear. Spotting a bookcase, he pointed at it before saying. "He's probably behind that bookcase over there."

"He couldn't move that by himself." Lori said when she saw how big the bookcase was.

"Yeah." Robbie agreed. Looking around the room, they tried to find anything that could tell them where Chris went. But after a few seconds and failing to find any, they moved on to the next room. Yet, they felt their fear increase and a sense of dread crawling up their spines with each passing second.

"Hey, how about in there?" Robbie asked, pointing to the other side of the room. "W-hy don't you go check it out?"

"Alone?" Nathan asked, scared.

"I'll go with you." Lori told him. Nodding, they began to cross the room while trying to see if they could spot Chris wherever he was hiding.

"Hey! Wait, wait. I'll come to." Robbie said before running over to them. But as soon as he reached them, they jumped in fear when lightning struck right outside the house, followed by a near-deafening boom of thunder.

"Well, he's not in here." Nathan said, wanting to leave.

"If he's playing a trick on us-" Robbie began, but Lori cut him off.

"You mean like the one we played on him? Huh?" She reminded as tapping could be heard nearby. Soon, another lighting strike happened, followed by more thunder, causing the three of them to jump in fear.

"Come on. Let's keep looking." Robbie said as he led them to the next room. "CHRIS, COME ON OUT! THIS ISN'T FUNNY ANYMORE!"

"YOU GOT US GOOD, CHRIS! NOW, COME ON!" Nathan shouted as the lightning and thunder increased in frequency and strength.

"Uh, Robbie." Lori said in a petrified tone, getting the other's attention.

"What? What is it?" He asked, worried. But he and Nathan quickly got their answer when they saw that someone or something boarded up the doors again.

"That is too weird." Nathan said as they slowly backed away from the doors.

"Well, Chris probably did that while we were in the other room." Robbie said, trying desperately to keep calm.

'I don't think so.'

"Hello? Who said that?" Lori asked, scared of the male voice they had just heard.

'I did.'

"Chris, is that you?" Robbie asked as the winds started to pick up. Yet, he received no answer. And after another thunderclap, Nathan ran towards the door and tried to pull the wood off the door but stopped when they heard a female voice.

'That won't do you any good.'

'We're coming down.'

Scared, the three slowly back up to the wall. As soon as they were against the wall, the doors suddenly shut themselves violently. Speechless, they began looking around for the source of the voices. However, they quickly found it when they saw two mysterious figures suddenly appear at the top of the stairs. One was a man, and the other was a lady. But what stuck out the most was that they were wearing wedding attire. Seeing the kids frozen in fear, they began to walk down the stairs as a spotlight appeared on them.

'Children.' The male said with a creepy smile on his face.

'My children.' The lady said in an equally chilling voice.

'Welcome...'

'...To The House of No Return.'

Scared, the three kids quickly moved to the next room in hopes of escaping. Only to realize that they couldn't escape when the doors were locked, and the couple appeared behind them. Once the ghosts stepped inside the room, they closed the last door behind them.

"Wh-where's Chris?" Robbie asked.

'He left.' The male answered.

"Left?" Lori asked, shocked.

'Out the back door.' The lady explained. 'We didn't want him to leave. Did we?'

'Oh, no. We wanted him to stay. We love children.'

'But he made a deal with us.'

"A deal?" Nathan asked.

"What kind of deal?" Robbie asked.

'A very good deal. A real bargain. Oh, yes.' The male answered as he moved to stand behind the kids.

"C-C-Can we make a deal?" Robbie asked.

'Oh, you can never make the kind of deal he made.' The male answered. 'Very pleasing to my wife.'

"What kind of bar-bargain was it?" Robbie asked.

'He promised that if we let him go, three children would take his place.'

'Three for one trade.' The female ghost added, sounding beyond happy. 'Three children.'

'And you know how much we love children.'

'Now we have three more.'

'He promised you'd come, and here you are, right on schedule.'

"Wh- what are you going to do to us?" Lori asked, frightened.

"Are you going to let us go?" Nathan asked, hopeful.

'Let you go? We can't let you go. We're a family now.' The female ghost answered as she slowly moved towards them.

'We love you.' The male added as he started to close in on them as well.

'And we're going to love you...' The female began while extending her hands towards the kids. 'Forever.'

'FOREVER!' The male said, mirroring his wife.

'FOREVER!'

'FOREVER!'

'FOREVER!'

'FOREVER!'

"AAAAHHHHH!" The three kids screamed in terror as the ghosts reached them. And the last thing we see is a lightning strike above the House of No Return.

Real World

"And from that day forward, Lori, Robbie, and Nathan were never seen again. Chris, meanwhile, returned home and pretended that he had dreamt everything that happened that day. The End." I hastily finished before quickly closing the book.

"Wow, looks like the others were right. That was a great cheesy horror story." Blake said, smiling.

"Agreed. That was a great story." Velvet said, worried.

"Thanks." I began but froze when we heard something horrifying.

"What's that?" Yang asked, activating her gauntlets as we looked around.

"Um, guys." Ruby said, getting our attention. Turning to her, we noticed that she was pointing towards the front doors. Looking towards it, we realized that something boarded up the doors like in the story.

'Oh, no.' I thought, worried as the chill returned but much colder.

'Oh, dear children. Sweet children. We're coming.' A voice announced.

"Who said that?" Velvet said, scared as Zwei started barking at the stairs again.

"I don't think we want to stay around to find out." I answered.

'We're here.' Another voice announced.

"AND WE'RE OUT!" Yang shouted as we got up and looked around for another way to escape.

"THE BACK DOOR!" I shouted, pointing towards the door. Not needing a second invitation, we ran into the next room and tried to open the door. Unfortunately, it was locked and wouldn't budge. "Damn it. It's stuck."

"Don't worry. I got this." Nora said, pulling me to the side. She then adjusted her grip on her hammer before striking the door with it. Had we not been struck with fear, we would have wondered how the door wasn't destroyed and simply flew open.

"RUN!" Blake shouted as we ran out of the house and headed towards the airstrip. Luckily, it had stopped raining. Although, we did also realize that it was now late as the moon had fully risen. After a couple of seconds of running, we thought about stopping but quickened our pace when we heard the door slam shut. However, while the others kept running, I slowed down to a stop. Breathing out, I turned around to face the house.

"I'd never thought I would ever step foot into the House of No Return." I said as I caught my breath and calmed down. Looking towards the window next to the back door, I saw the faces of the couple smiling at me before closing the window blinds. Sighing, I was about to turn around but stopped when I heard Zwei barking next to me. Curious, I looked down and saw Zwei barking at the house. Feeling my gaze on him, he stopped barking and looked up at me. But before I could say anything, his eyes glowed a bright yellow, with his pupils turning into black slits.

I didn't even question it. I just ran as fast as possible to catch up to the others. All the while, the sounds of Lori, Robbie, and Nathan came from the House of No Return.

Notes:

Next Chapter: The Werewolf of Fever Swamp.

Since the show is two parts, should it be the same here or the whole thing in one chapter?