Chapter Text
For anyone else, August 8 might as well be another normal day, perhaps someone’s birthday, or the day someone got married at, the day their child was born or perhaps the day someone loved died
For the Thompsons, it's the last one
Since 1995, Rayne, Julia and Mason mourned not just the friends, but the family they all lost, Rayne and Julia mourned their sister and sister in Law Carol, and Mason mourned not just the friends he had as a Playtime orphan, but the memories they all shared.
And so, for the past 10 years, every August 8, this unusual family, along with many others, mourned empty graves and names written on memorials for the missing employees and orphans.
They all walked past several marble rectangles, each with at least one name inscribed, Mason stopped for a moment, watching as Rayne, his dearest baba, put a bouquet of white lilies, forget-me-nots, and red poppies on the white vase with golden cracks that sat in front of his aunt’s grave, the name “Carol Thompson” written in big letters, underneath read “Who would give the world for her family” with the date of 1969-1995 just above. They no longer sobbed at the sight, but he could still see the pain in their eyes. Julia, his mother, walked forward and gently grasped her lover’s hand, holding it tight, he watched before proceeding, for his bouquet is for another stone.
As he walked towards the largest marble statue, he took notice of his surroundings, every single vase and bouquet had at least one poppy, a way of symbolizing those who disappeared on that fateful day, and so did his, alongside the roses, lilies and daisies. He watched as many others put flowers on their beloved’s memorial, making a colorful contrast against the white marble, But no stone was more colorful than the one in the middle
The large marble square had names inscribed in each corner, all from children who never went to a warm home, the foot of the monument was filled with flowers of all colors, most notably red, and so he placed his own bouquet along the others
“Hey… hope you all are doing good wherever you all are, things are going fine here” he muttered to the stone, receiving the sound of a weak wind as a reply “Not much has changed in the last year, other that baba and mom finally got married after all those years, can y’all believe that?” he shoved his hands into the pocket of his shorts (it was too warm for pants, he hated wearing shorts), a small smirk on his face at the silly comment, this time the trees too replied along the wind, swinging slightly from side to side, a few stray leaves fell too.
behind him he heard footsteps,and looking back both of his parents, hand in hand with a poppy in the upheld ones, came slowly to put their own flowers on the pedestal
“Mr. Hudson gave us these for the kids” Julia answered the unasked question
“He does that every year Jules” he replied with a eyeroll, but was unable to hide the smile on his face.
“Heh, i know kiddo, i know” she said with a laugh “But so do we…”
The three returned in silence to the entrance of the memorial, built by Mr. Hudson around a year after the incident, as a way to cope with his grandson’s disappearance, along with many others, after all, if the police weren’t going to do anything, the community may as well do the rest, said man was sitting by the front bench now, white, straight hair brushed back and slightly hidden under the white fedora he always wore, holding his cane and a photograph of the person this place was made originally for, the trees made a nice spot for anyone to rest in the warm sun
“Afternoon Mr.Hudson” Mason greeted the old man
“Ah, Good afternoon young man, how have you been?” he said with a kind smile
“The same as always i guess” They boy continued walking only to stop not that far away
“...Ten years… has it really been that long?” The old man asked outloud, looking at the leaves above as they swayed in the wind, a sorrowful look in his face
“Yeah… its… hard to believe its been that long” Mason replied, looking down at his feet, “But that doesn't mean it should be forgotten”
“Hah.. getting wise eh?" he shook his head slightly, laughing lightly “Have a good night you three”
“So do you sir” Both Mother and son replied
The drive home was simple, the day getting warmer and warmer as the sun begun to set, the AC was on, and so was the radio, playing ‘As my guitar gently weeps’, and for a moment, in the distance, deep in the woods, he saw the enormous swirly yellow and red Chimney of the abandoned factory, left to rot forevermore. His brows furrow slightly at the sign of the boarded gateway.
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“Alright I’m thinking of some spaghetti for dinner, how ‘bout that hm?” Julia asked outloud, closing the car’s door, Rayne gave a thumbs up, but stopped and looked to the slightly rustling bushes with a curious look, “swear i saw something blue there, must be a blue jay i guess” they shrugged
“Sounds good to me i guess” Mason replied, as Rayne climbed the wooden steps before stopping “hm? what 's this?” they thought,, picking up the VHS and the letter. From behind them, Mason peeked over his parents shoulder “Didn’t the mailman pass earlier to-day…” his voice trailed off in the end as Rayne turned the letter around to look at the logo, both stared in horror at the logo
“Hmm? What is it?” Julia climbed the steps before stopping midway, the three could only stare at the large unmistakable red “P” on the back of the envelope
PlaytimeCo
“Wh-wha-”
“Inside, now” Rayne whispered, voice turning hoarse at the end
And quickly, the three went inside the house, quickly locking the door, Rayne set the VHS and letter on the table before moving to close all blinds of the house
“Jules? What's going on? Why would they even send a letter?” Mason asked Julia, while continuously glancing at the front door
“I don’t know… but for now let’s just…” she stopped for a moment, staring out the door and giving a glance at a practically running Rayne “do me a favor and get the VCR player kay?”
“mhm” he said before darting into the living room
soon all the windows, blinds and doors were closed, and the three (Mason refused to go to his room) now were re-reading the darn letter for the 4th time
“EVERYONE THINKS THE STAFF DISSAPEARED 10 YEARS AGO
WER'E STILL HERE.
FIND THE FLOWER”
By now, Mason would have given a snarky comment about the poor grammar, or say that it was probably a prankster kid, but the look on his parent’s face said otherwise, especially after watching the tape.
It was a commercial for the Poppy Playtime doll from many decades ago. He was shocked at the low price of 2,99 for the tour, but that was nothing in comparison to what appeared next. An upshot of several catwalks, highlighted by the enormous drawing of a poppy flower on the wall, with a door in the middle, along what seemed like objects hanging from the pipes on the ceiling.
‘[I think I’ve been there before once or twice… but that’s definitely in the factory]’ Rayne signed, their hands shaking slightly.
“So the letter is…”
‘[Real? no idea… Only one way to find know]’ They got up from the couch, making their way towards the kitchen
“You're not seriously thinking of going there?!” Julia got up, bewilderment written all over her face for her lover.
‘[Worst case possible, it’s either kids playing a prank, or i just find a homeless person]’ They signed while walking backwards, a well practiced trick, about to grab the uncooked pasta to make dinner, before sighing and turning to look at their lover ‘[Just not now, it’s getting late right now]’
“So we’re going tomorrow?”
“Yeah- hold on ‘we’?” They nodded before turning around to stare into the teens eyes after putting the pasta in the boiling water, their question and slight panic eminent on their face
“ I’m going too” he took a step forward, faintly both heard Julia whisper a “ooh boy…”
‘[oh no you’re not!]’ They waved a finger in his face after signing ‘[that factory was a pain to navigate before, now must be even worse!]’
“I lived there!”
‘[No, you lived in Playcare, it’s different]’
“Nuh uh!”
‘[Mason, we are not discussing this today!]’ They used every ounce of themselves not to use their voice, but stopped once the teens sunk back “...oh come on…” they silently begged Julia for help
“sigh…Look… Both of us knows how much you want to know that happened there, trust me i do too, we all have so many questions still unanswered ” she knelt down slightly and grasped his shoulders slightly “But that’s not a safe place for a kid”
Mason didn’t reply at first, before muttering a quiet “okay…”
But he had set his mind
That night, when Mason went to bed, he planned silently for tomorrow
…
“Rayne… I know you’re worried… but panicking around isn’t going to change anything” Julia tried to reassure their lover, holding their hand while both sat in bed, Rayne’s leg bounced like crazy, posture hunched and in visible distress, their dark brown hair let loose “My Love…Angel” At the nickname, Rayne turned to look at her, and both stared into each’s eyes for a moment.
Rayne took a deep breath "I just” they whispered, nervously fidgeting the hem of their shirt, tears trickled their eyes
“Scared…” Their head fell on their lover’s shoulder, who lightly let her own head fall close
“I know Angel… im scared too” her fingers lightly caressed the calloused hands of their beautiful angel “But for tonight… let’s just rest”
The next morning, Mason waved goodbye his parents, both heading out to work
‘[You promise you’ll be okay?]’ Rayne asked halfway through the door, it was obvious last night events were still in their mind
“Yes ba, i’ll be fine, im thinking of calling the others for some band practice” He lied, waving a hand around, the other hidden behind him and with his fingers crossed “Y’know, this year might be our year at the music festival”
Rayne smiled fondly, and just before closing the door they signed ‘[whatever you do, DON’T open the door to who you don’t know]’ before closing the door and walking towards the car, where Julia waited patiently in the passenger seat.
Meanwhile the young teen gave a relieved sigh, before going to do his chores, after all if he’s sneaking out, might as well leave the house clean.
maybe that’ll lessen the very obvious grounding he’ll receive… he hopes
…………
“All right, im done” He stretched as he zipped his black messenger bag closed, inside, he had just shoved his most important items for this “mission” as he’s calling it, his personal camcorder, an Ipod and headphones, his flip phone, a small notebook with a pencil eraser, a few snacks, a screwdriver and a portable flashlight, downstairs is the water bottle filled to the brim waiting patiently on table. Truth be told, he was done, and yet, ever since 12PM it has been raining nonstop, thunder occasionally rolling in the distance, he had hoped the entire day that it'd be over before night, but it almost 6pm now, and he seriously hopes that the weather report is right and it’ll stop soon.
Quickly he closes the door to his room, but not before looking at the old CatNap plushie sitting on the shelf next to the bed, over the years the little guy had opened several times and had been sewed back to pristine conditions by his Parents. Soon he’s down the stairs to the living room, where the house computer sits, he plans on making a new blog post, or maybe sending a message to his friends?, In the end, he does both, a simple post about “meeting old friends and finding answers”, and a simple e-mail to his closest friends, but with a chilling message
“Going to the hellhole tonight, taking a weapon, if not back in 2 days talk to my parents about what we found, you guys are the best, love ya”
Looking outside, the rain had subdued a bit, more, and the clouds were starting to part, he turned the computer off and picked up the bottle, next to it a letter he left, making his way to the door he quickly the put on his red raincoat and finally went outside, locking the door and picking up the dark blue bicycle, he pulled his bike towards the road, before glancing back at the house, sitting in the low light of the day, rain hitting the wooden boards and feeding the plants on the front yard and backyard. His gaze lingered for a while, something in him told him that was a sight he’d cherished when he came back, before pedaling away towards the abandoned factory and orphanage he once lived in.
It wasn’t long before a car pulled into the highway, its passengers none the wiser of the horrors that’d come.