Chapter Text
Darkness. All I see is darkness.
I feel moisture in my shoes and rays of sunlight shining from above. With heavy eyelids, I gaze up in front of me, only to see an empty tunnel leading endlessly through a black void. I sit up begrudgingly, looking around to find a few more endless, void-filled tunnels.
I shudder in bewilderment at the sudden sound of a click. A simple slowed down melody starts to echo from a broken music box that I can’t seem to find; the sound emanates from seemingly every direction. The tune kind of sounds like the songs they teach in kindergarten.
I sluggishly push myself up, my legs wobbling violently before I fall to my knees. I sigh before pushing myself up again, this time keeping my balance still enough to not topple over again. I test a few small steps, the soles of my runners dragging across the grimy cement. I head for the the tunnel in front of me, easing my way into a somewhat normal pace by the time I reach the entrance.
By now, the sluggish jingle of the damaged music box becomes much closer with each step. The music is so loud, in fact, that I can barely hear the water splashing at my feet. As I continue to approach the source of the music, I soon realized I can make out someone humming along with the song.
The tunnel swells up at the end until I reach an opening. There are no windows, but I can see everything with perfect detail. There are cascades of water pouring from all sides of the room; the water looks dark and murky while the walls look worn and gray.
The music suddenly stops, and I freeze in my spot once my eyes reach the center of the room. There’s a man; he’s tall...too tall. He’s just ominously standing in the middle of the room, facing the opposite direction. I can’t quite make out most his features, but his clothes; definitely a clown costume. What once was white and clean is now dirty and worn down. His hair resembles a cheap wig at the costume store. It’s fiery-orange and definitely not combed as it seems to just go out in every direction. A slow laugh erupted from him, echoing throughout the room and growing stronger until it became a full, manic laugh. Almost as abruptly as it started, it suddenly came to a halt.
“A cheap wig? Well, there goes my first impression. Maybe I should comb my hair before I come to visit you next time…” The clown-man spoke in a sarcastic tone.
“I’m sorry if I said it out loud. I didn't mean it,” I gulped. “Where are we, and who are you?” I asked.
I’m pretty sure none of this is real. No tunnel goes on forever, and there’s no way in hell that I’m actually stuck here with this Ronald McDonald Reject without any recollection of how I even got here. There’s just one simple answer to all of this: I must be dreaming.
The deranged clown-guy giggled. “Oh, but you are dreaming, [y/n]. However, that doesn't make me any less real, nor does it make you any more safe,” he said while turning around so I can finally see his face. Yeah, he’s definitely a clown. His eyes changes color while he examines me, and his smile grows wide and predatory. I take a step back without even realizing I did for a moment.
“Do not worry, [y/n]. I’m not going to hurt you...at least, not yet,” he sniggered with a laugh. “Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Pennywise, Pennywise the dancing clown,” he exclaimed while giving a slight bow.
“You don’t look like you dance much,” I replied with a mixture of fear and sarcasm laced in my voice. Pennywise’s eyes became erratic and aggressive, and his smile fell slightly, but he’s still grinning.
“Oh, but I love to dance! Trust me, we’ll be dancing, you and me. I’ll just have to show you how do it right before the final act.”
“What final act?” I asked, bewildered.
“I don’t want to ruin the fun, [y/n]. You'll just have to wait,” he gushed cheerfully. He started to approach me, and I tried to move backwards, but I soon met a wall that definitely wasn't there before.
“Now, now, I’ve waited quite a while for you to show up. At least let me take a good look at you,” he insisted while roughly grabbing my face. He smells like popcorn and cotton candy that expired a hundred years ago.
I gaze into his eyes; he looks like someone who was starved for months, and he sneers at me like I was fresh bread out of the oven.
“Oh, how I’ve waited for you, [y/n]. All these years, all these lives, and you’re still my favorite. What will you do this time? How are you going to act? Do you feel me calling to you?” He leans in closer, his voice raising with every word. “Do you feel your soul trembling with my presence? Ah, I will never get past your sweet scent, [y/n]! You will always come back, and this time, I'll make sure you stay forever!” he declared, each word accentuated with growing hysterical laughter as he spoke. I closed my eyes while covering my ears as hard as I can, but he won’t stop.
“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!” I screamed, my voice cracking horribly as I spoke. His laugh suddenly ceased, but I kept my eyes sealed.
This is a nightmare. This isn't real...
Wake up, wake up, wake up, Wake -
“ - Up, [y/n]. Wake up, honey!” My eyes snap open, the light of day hitting me strong like wind blowing in my face. I look around me, trying to take in my surroundings. I remember the car, the smell, and we were moving...it was just a dream.
“[y/n], are you ok?” I look up at the rearview mirror to see my mom’s eyes worriedly examining me. “I’ve been trying to wake you up for a solid five minutes. I was worried that I might have to look for a prince charming to wake you up. Who knows where to find one these days?”
“I’m awake, I’m awake. No prince charming needed,” I replied with a giggle. “What’s up? Is everything ok?” I asked with a lifted eyebrow.
“Yeah, honey, everything's all right. I just wanted to wake you up since we’re almost there. In fact, look,” she said as she pointed towards something.
I followed her index finger to see a big old sign: ‘WELCOME TO DERRY, MAINE’. The sign had a bunch of missing person posters littered all over it.
“I’m telling you, honey, I’ve got a great feeling about this place,” mom elated. I turn around to see the backside of the sign for more posters. Instead, I just see a red balloon in the middle of the road, not going up nor down, just...completely still. A shiver crawled up my spine like a spider.
“Yeah....we’ll see…” I said, still watching the balloon. I still hear a low pitched hum of a familiar tune in the back of my head.
“...We’ll see…”