Chapter Text
It was a hot and sunny afternoon in Faraway. Basil had missed those days of innocence, wasted by his injuries. He could only blame himself for it though, he was the one who had made a big deal out of...well, nothing. Everything was good and normal today, as it was yesterday, and surely in the days that will follow.
His friends, the ever helper, had invested in a small greenhouse to cover the plants and vegetables they had grown in the forest. What a neat idea, he thought, would help him with the plants and not get attacked by mosquitoes every five second. On this particular day, his friends had joined him. He had refused at first, wanting to get back into gardening on his own. But soon, he felt as if going in alone would do more harm than good. He was still weak from his visit to the hospital, and Polly was careful to not overwork him, her definition of overworking being doing anything that needs a remote amount of effort.
But there was something else behind is following along. He truly didn’t feel right alone. Every night, he was in some sort of nightmare, a large and black figure entering his bedroom and looming over him until he drifted into sleep despite his best efforts. The figure did nothing, at least Basil felt it did nothing. No harm, no...nothing coming out of it, only an icy and sharp breath. Since Its first appearance at the hospital, Basil felt it, behind his back or in the corner of his eye, watching him intently.
What could it be, he wondered. Nothing about his friends, he sighed. It couldn’t be his friends, they were right beside him, helping him plant peony seeds!
Aubrey was here, still in her punkish attire. The roots of her hair were now back to being a childish and deep black. Her attitude had completely changed after Basil went to the hospital. She constantly apologized for things Basil frankly didn’t know about. He does remember he was afraid of the lake in their old hangout spot. Weird, he never was afraid to dive in before. Ah, maybe his mind is playing more tricks on him than he realized.
Kel and hero were here. Kel was less… “out there” now. Much more calm and reserved, a bit like his brother-to his displeasure. The rivalry between the two was still lit, but the flames have been seemingly dying overnight. Hero on the other hand, he became more like Kel, more outgoing, funny, energetic. It was refreshing, yes, but from time to time, he turned to Basil with a strange look on his face. A mix of melancholy and sadness Basil didn’t know the source of. Could he...no, he isn’t mad at Basil, how could he? The flower boy had done nothing wrong or unsettling or drastic. Ha, silly, how could Basil do something like...he doesn’t know, kill himself?
Basil would never hurt himself
A-hem. Sorry about that, something, maybe one of those darn mosquitoes, had been stuck in his throat.
Sunny was here too. Funnily enough, Basil thought he was staying home most of the time. He had been, for four long, slow, agonizing years. Basil would never understand why the noirette had payed a visit to him in the hospital, but Basil was thankful for it. He never understood it fully, but Basil thought he and Sunny shared a special bond, more...complex than any other friend. Basil didn’t like Sunny’s company, he reveled in it. Any time spent with him was a time well spent, and Basil was glad he could continue this today. Everything was okay.
Mari, was there too. Why wouldn’t she be here? What puzzled Basil was that it seemed she only talked to him, everyone else just...ignored her. Why? Sure, she had some complicated history with Sunny, but how could it have affected her friendship with Aubrey and Kel? Hero was more of a mystery. Maybe...yeah, that was part of a surprise Hero had planned for her! It was going to be their five year anniversary as a couple. Yeah, that was it. Why would only Basil see her? It’s not like...she was dead.
Mari never died
“Woops!” Kel yelled, falling on the freshly turned soil, a pot in his arm.
He was tasked with pruning some of the plants’ stems, something all his friends were adamant on not letting Basil do. Sure, Basil’s hands were shakier now, but that was just a side effect from his treatment at the hospital, it would die soon.
Everything dies soon, doesn’t it?
Basil turned around, frightened. That voice, he was sure of it, it was It’s. He couldn’t anything out, the canopy of trees had made a shade so dark you couldn’t see your nose. He turned back and saw Mari, gently smiling at him. She was in gardening clothes, of course, a small rake in hand.
Something in her hair had caught his eye. What were these? Wood chips? How did they get in her hair, Aubrey had gotten none on hers?!? The type of wood was even more peculiar, it didn’t come from the forest, or from the tree house. It was...glistening to an unnatural extent even, surely, the wood was varnished by something. The only thing varnished Basil could think of was…
Sunny’s violin
But...no. Sunny never broke his violin, Basil scoffed. He couldn’t have, he saw the two performing the recital! IT was really good too, but only Basil had stood up for his applause. Come to think of it, the room was eerily silent, like no one was actually there. Like…
the recital never happened.
Basil vigorously shook his head. What in God’s name was this, some sort of prank the Hooligans were playing on him? Sure, they didn’t have the best of relationships, but Aubrey could have told them!
No matter. He recollected his thoughts, breathed slowly and turned to his friends who were gesturing, around Kel. He hadn’t gotten up?
“What’s happening?” Basil asked, his voice still trembling.
“Nothing!” Aubrey blocked his view, looking rather...afraid?
This only piqued more of the boy’s interest. “Something wrong with Kel?”
“Nothing!” Hero replied, panting.
Basil felt It, right behind him. He was feeling as if he was worlds apart from his friends. How could that be, he was right beside them! All of this, under Mari’s still smile.
Basil cupped his hands and walked over to the others.
What he saw, was a red liquid coming out of Kel’s hand.
Like Mari.
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He gasped awake in his bedroom, a small basin next to his bed’s feet, under his face. It was somewhat full of...vomit? Had he vomited? Basil didn’t know, his head felt light, about to drop down on something. His vision was blurry and obscured by an intense and bright light. However, the lights weren’t turned on. It was still day, but the sunlight was very weak in the afternoon.
He felt something, deep inside his bowels sprouting up in his throat. It burned, like cinder. He opened his mouth in response and regurgitated, in the bowl. He had really vomited. But to what? Sure, Kel was hurt, but he...he wasn’t going to die.
Kel would never die.
Mari never died.
He repeatedly banged his head, what was his mind up to, today? He couldn’t figure out more, hearing the faint sounds of conversation in the living room. He got up, and realized someone had put him in his pajamas. How thoughtful, he must have gotten dirty while his “blackout” was going on. Judging by how the cloth was touching his body, he knew Sunny had done the task. He had his way of slithering into his clothes, and maybe made Basil profit out of this. It made Basil’s cheek hot, but maybe it was just the summer heat, he was a winter person after all.
He walked back into the living room, crossing Mari out of all people down the hallway. She was leaning on...nothing. Basil never really understood why that space was here in the first place, and it wasn’t used by the bathroom either, it didn’t reach that far into the house. Did Polly want to place a door there?
A door to another bedroom.
Mari at least seemed startled by his presence and gave him a warm and affectionate smile.
They both entered the living room, where his friends were sat around the table, a chocolate cake was being served. Mari sat between Hero and Sunny. None of them budged, not acknowledging her existence. What is even happening?
“Oh, you’re awake!” Polly shouted worryingly as she hugged Basil. “I was so worried about you!” She turned to his friends. “I thought you could have kept him away from it!”
“Sorry.” They all replied weakly. Sunny just lowered his head in shame. Basil liked Sunny’s lack of a voice, it was...soothing somehow. Everyone thought he never really showed any emotion, they were wrong. His face could tell a thousand words, more than what any sign language could do. Basil could feel the care for him Sunny had put in his frown, making the heat on his cheeks even stronger than before.
“I’m sorry, but...what is “it”?” Could it be the creature that was stalking him? For whatever reason, Basil wasn’t sensing it anywhere, it was relaxing to say the least.
“Oh, poor thing.” Polly gently caressed his hair. Basil never minded that, she was like a mom to him.
A real mom.
Okay, that was it. Basil pushed away Polly and began to shake his head, hitting it repeatedly to somehow shut that thing up!
“Basil! What’s happening?”
He straightened up. Did he just...do that? No, Basil wasn’t stupid enough to hurt himself in front of his friends. “I...there’s a voice inside my head.”
“A…” She gasped and knelled. “Oh, sweetie. I’m so sorry.” she pulled him in for another hug, more sorrowful this time, full of genuine empathy and love. It was almost a mirror to how Basil had taken care of Polly during these last four years.
“I’m sorry, but what? There’s nothing…” He stammered, the words going back into his lungs.
“Don’t worry, man. We got you.” Kel waved at him.
He had a bandage on his hand.
Basil almost retched on sight of the covered up wound. He fell on the ground, gasping for air. The dizziness and haze in his vision had come back, stronger than before. No, that was impossible. Kel wasn’t that clumsy, he...he…
He couldn’t have hurt himself.
Sunny had rushed up to him and gently pressed his chest against his back, taking deep breaths. This seemed to calm Basil down has his own labored breathing became slower, in sync with his friend’s. He let go of his head that was weighting on him just a second ago and looked up to see his friends looking down on him, a grin of terror on their face. Only Mari hadn’t moved, keeping on smiling.
“What...what is happening?” The poor boy asked between two slow breaths.
“Sorry, man. Shouldn’t have done that.” Kel winced, keeping his hand behind his back.
“Done what? You...you waved and…”
It soon hit him. That liquid, that ungodly, terrible, horrible red trace, it was blood. Basil had fainted, to the sight of his friend’s open wound. How? He never did that before! He was used to cut himself on accident with his gardening shears, but loosing consciousness? No.
“I...how is that possible?”
Sunny grunted, Basil could make out a sincere apology in it. Apology for what?
“It’s...complicated. Just know that...you know you can’t do much without supervision.” His caretaker said, a tear in her eyes.
“That’s...why you went gardening with me?” Basil asked them all.
“I...normally should be trying to get ahead for college, but this was more important.” Hero said, scratching his head. Guilt was plastered on his face, as well as...anger? What could he be angry about?
“I too had to practice, but I can’t say no to help.” Kel smiled. Strangely, it didn’t feel as heartfelt as before. He seemed to regret being with Basil. How?
“I gave m friends the week off to look after you.” There was clear anger in Aubrey’s words. She was tightly gripping her bat, but Basil knew she wouldn’t hit him. Right? Aubrey would never hit her.
Sunny grunted again. And again Basil felt an apology coming from him, but also...sincere care in him. Basil didn’t know how else to put it, but Sunny felt like he was the only one really wanting to be beside him.
Mari said nothing, still smiling on her chair and looking intently at Basil. It was getting unsettling for him and he retreated his gaze. But no matter what, he felt as if her eyes were piercing into his soul.
“What’s wrong?” Polly asked, seeing Basil shake his head in discomfort.
“She won’t stop looking at me like that.”
“Who?” She asked, even more confused than before.
“Mari, who else?” He replied, a bit sharply to his taste.
A silence fell. Aubrey was the first to leave, stomping towards the door and slamming it shut. Hero was covering his tearing up face with his hand, not looking at Basil anymore. The only one that kept eye contact was Kel, but he looked at Basil with the sheepish look of a dog that had just been reprimanded by its master. Sunny was squeezing him even tighter now, sniffling.
And Mari was still there, smiling at him.
“What is happening? You...you don’t see her?” Basil stammered.
“Basil. Mari’s dead.”
This didn’t came from Kel, or Hero, or Polly.
It came from Sunny himself.
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Amongst the vibrant trees, a child was frolicking, unburdened by sorrow and sadness. But, in his ecstasy on life, he got lost inside the forest. No one had told the boy it was enchanted, so that nobody could ever exit. The boy kept walking, passing tree after tree after tree. He came face to wall to a house. A giant, and magnificent house. The boy knew this house well, it was the house of his best friend, the king! Oh, what luck he had, he could see the king and his sister play the most beautiful of tunes the valley had heard in years! Overjoyed, he walked around the house to a door. He opened it, unsuspecting of what had come inside.
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They never listen, do they?
Basil woke up in a cold sweat. He must have passed out again since it was now nighttime. His blue azure eyes reflecting the moonlight. Mari was standing on the other side of the room, leaning against the wall, her hair almost becoming one with the painted leaves and stems. They almost looked like a rope.
Something was different about her. She was more cold, uninviting in her stance. Her smile had fallen, looking perpetually unbothered and aloof. She came back from an apparent daze and walked up to Basil, a smirk on her face.
Why are you up so late?
“I...I…”
She pushed her finger on his lip.
Shhh. They might hear you.
“But...how am I…?”
Just think. It’s easy.
Think?
There we go!
Basil gasped. He had heard his thoughts! Mari gave him finger guns before going back to inexpressiveness. It wasn’t Sunny’s type, he still gave traces of emotion. Her stare was blank, almost dead.
You know, you made a pretty bad show of yourself.
I...I know. Basil curled up in his bed.
She walked up to him reassuringly.
No, no no no no no. I never meant that it was your fault! To be frank, it’s mostly theirs.
What?
Basil, you didn’t hear them? They said I was dead!
But...you…
She stood back up, arms crossed. You’re joining them too? I thought you could do better than that.
She shrugged and walked up to the door.
Wait!
She stopped and turned around, a wicked smile on her face. Yeah?
I’m...not with them. I don’t know why this is happening to me, maybe it’s the other way around-
It IS the only way around, Basil. How else do you explain why I’m able to walk, talk and touch everything?
But...it makes no sense! Why would they do that to you?
I don’t know, Basil. But what I do know is that...only you can make things better.
But how? They’re mad at me for...for…
We just have to make them see the truth. Our, truth.
She held out her pinkie, smiling warmly at him. Basil hesitated before doing the same. The second they stopped shaking their hands, Mari stood back up and opened the door. Inside came in...It, as Basil could understand. It was big, with tendrils helping it move around. It was pitch black, with some hints of blue on its skin and pure white teeth and a single, piercing eye.
Don’t worry, he doesn’t really bite.
She chuckled as It came closer and closer to Basil.
He could feel it’s cold and sharp breath against his neck, its teeth brushing against his chest before enveloping him and plunging his jaw into his body.
He felt nothing, only a slight sting on his abdomen. He reopened his eyes to see that Mari was still here, her color and form looking more like It than his friend’s.
So? are we ready to make them pay?
Her voice was now low, and ground against his ears.
He slowly nodded, feeling sleep taking hold of him.
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The little child opened the door, and found the king’s sister-
The king’s sis-
She never died she never died she never died she never died she-
The sister was fine.