Chapter 1
Notes:
This fic was started before any character designs were revealed so these are all entirely my headcanons!! I have not changed how any character is described but feel free to ignore anything if it bothers you. The only majorly relevant headcanon appearance wise is Tommy's albinism and Charlotte's mixed heritage.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
When the Hathmoore Children's Asylum was finally shut down, it was exactly three months and four days since Dr. Boris died. Anthony knew because he had been counting. The investigation into the deaths had taken a while before morphing into an investigation of the Asylum itself. Then, two months and fifteen days after the death, a new nurse showed up. She had a similar uniform and her hair was in the same tight bun, but she had a metal name tag that read "Green Valley Mental Asylum, Sally". Sally poked around the place and had copies made of everyone's medical charts. Two days later, Sally was back and she explained to the children they would be transferred to Green Valley as soon as the space opened up.
Everyone joined in counting the days after that. Slowly, more and more of the staff were leaving. The meanest of the nurses were escorted into police cars, while others simply stopped showing up to work. The children never learned whether they had been fired or quit. It was a blessing to slowly gain back their freedoms because of the reduced staff. The girls and boys no longer had to have staggered meal and chore times, instead finally getting to truly talk with each other. The treatments continued, as did punishments, but no one seemed to care as much. (A blessing and a curse, as while the ice baths ended sooner, the nurses stopped paying attention to Niccolo's still-healing wounds.)
Then, three months and two days after the death, five Green Valley nurses, including Sally, showed up after treatments and replaced the entire staff, telling the children that they would be leaving that evening. They needed to pack up whatever things they had and prepare. They may as well have announced that they had bought each child their very own cake.
"I wonder if the food will be better!" Pete wondered aloud as the boys walked down the hall, letting Niccolo hold onto his arm for support. He was able to walk on his own just fine, the wounds had closed last week, but he was still unsteady enough for precautions to be taken.
"It better be." Polo scoffed. "It's beyond abysmal here."
Anthony opened the door for the group, letting everyone through. "I'm just glad we'll be out."
"Tommy wants to know what the treatments will be like," Smudge said, speaking up for their youngest member.
"Probably the same," Niccolo said, letting go of Pete to gather his books.
"But maybe not. Maybe they'll be better." Edward said, ruffling his little brother's hair.
There was a knock at the door and another nurse entered. Her name tag read "Nancy" and she carried a clipboard. The room fell silent as they watched her face, watched her body language. No one had mentioned it yet, but Anthony knew that beyond anything about the food and treatment, they were all the most worried about the nurses and doctors.
Anthony felt Hollow put a hand on his shoulder. "I won't let her do anything. None of us will." Anthony believed her, but it didn't make his nerves disappear. He watched as the other imaginary friends shifted in front of their kids as well.
"Hello, kids," Nancy said. "I'm just here to make sure that we have all the paperwork in order. We'll be reevaluating your treatment plans at Green Valley to be sure that you are each receiving the proper care. I just want to be sure that we aren't mixing anyone up, okay?"
Silence.
She chuckled nervously. "Alright then. I'll just ask the questions and let you guys get back to it." She approached Pete first. "What's your name?"
"Pete Gustavo."
"How old are you?"
"I'm seven."
"Alright, what are your parent's names?"
"Vicente and Antonia Gustavo."
"Alright, these are all in order." Nancy turned towards Edward next. "What about you?"
"I'm Edward Bennett, I'm eight."
"What are your parent's names?"
"Jeanne and Abe."
"I'll assume Abe is short for Abraham. What about you?" Nancy said to Tommy.
"Tommy, my brother. He's four, he doesn't talk." Nancy made a face at that.
Tommy and Edward had the same face and the same tight curls (even if Tommy's were always buzzed close to his head), yet while Edward had deep brown skin and eyes, Tommy's skin was pale white and his eyes were a watery blue. Anthony had asked Edward about it one night when they were the only two awake after one of Tommy's nightmares. Edward had simply shrugged and said that's just how he was born.
"You two are actually brothers? You don't just have the same last name?" Nancy asked, face still weird.
"Unless the midwife swapped babies at the last second," Edward said, pulling Tommy closer to his side. He was glaring at the nurse now, almost daring her to question it further.
Nancy met his glare for a moment before just sighing and moving on. She turned to Niccolo who answered before she could ask him anything.
"Niccolo. I'm nine and my parents are Sebastiano and Graziella Gallo."
"Right. Can I ask where your injuries came from?" Niccolo was covered in scars, but she gestured to the still healing one on his head and the bandages poking out from under the hospital gown.
"Doctor Boris was a deranged maniac who stabbed me after killing several of the nurses." It was the truth, but the nurses had never believed that Boris had hurt him. Even when he was determined to be the one who murdered the nurses they refused to report his injuries to the police. Nancy scribbled something down on her sheet, muttering something about self-mutilation tied to delusions. "What about you?" She asked Anthony.
"I'm Anthony Rivers, I'm eight. My parents are Joseph and Irene."
Nancy nodded. "Alright. Everything seems to be in order. We haven't found any bags to put your stuff in yet, so just use your pillowcase for now." With everything sorted out on her end, Nancy left the room, leaving them to their own devices.
"I don't like her," Marco said, crossing his arms as she glared at the door.
"Agreed," Twistiee growled.
Anthony turned away from the ensuing conversation, looking for what he even had to put in the pillowcase. There was his stash of writing materials, but almost nothing else. The little collection of possessions he had brought with him had no doubt been thrown away long ago, back when he first arrived in January. To think that he had been here for six months; it was nauseating. It felt more like years, and he hadn't even been there that long in comparison to the others. If he remembered correctly, Niccolo had been here for six years, and it could have easily been so much longer. Phantom memories of the past timeline that Hollow had told him of bubbled to the forefront of his mind. Annabelle and all the others lobotomized, left as husks of their former selves and forcibly fused to their imaginary friends.
"Hey," Hollow said. "What's done is done, and we saved everyone this time. Get your head out of the clouds. Is there anything else that you want to pack?" She was as blunt as ever, cutting through the rambling thoughts that tangled inside his head like fine threads.
"No, not really," Anthony said before calling out to the rest of the room. "I have plenty of extra room if anyone needs it."
"Can you fit in some of my books?" Niccolo asked, leaving Polo's side as he continued to insult the nurse with Marco and Twistee. "I think I could fit them all in mine, but it would be really heavy."
"Of course." Anthony passed him the pillowcase and watched as he sorted out which books should go where. In the process, he caught a glimpse at what Niccolo had already put in his pillowcase. There was the purple stuffed rabbit that Charlotte had made for him after the attack as well as the large knife that he would attack his bed with when angry. Hopefully, the nurses wouldn't search their things, otherwise Niccolo would certainly get into trouble.
Around an hour later, Nancy appeared to gather the boys. They met up with the girls in the courtyard. Momo and Annabelle were comforting a weeping Charlotte at her side while Dolly hugged her from behind, head rested on her shoulder. Pixie and Pooky stood to the side, glaring at the nurse supervising them.
"What happened?" Edward asked.
"The nurses wouldn't let Charlotte keep her sewing needles," Momo said, still young enough that she lacked the tact to tell them later on in private. "They said that we would use them to misbehave or hurt each other, but I think they're just mean."
The nurse started to talk, sputtering something about how it was for their own safety when the doors swung open. The other three nurses poured out, arms filled with papers and files.
"We're all through here. Has the paddywagon arrived?" One nurse asked.
"Yes," Nancy said. "We'll load the children up and then drive back ourselves." Then, to the children, "You'll be transferred to Green Valley in the back of a paddywagon. We'll arrive there tomorrow morning, just in time for the fourth of July."
The children were ushered to the Police van and made to sit on the thin metal benches attached to the walls. Hollow and Smudge were small enough to fit on the ends of the benches as well, next to their respective children, but the others were squished together at the far end of the van.
It was a long and boring ride. The conversation trailed from one topic to the other, mostly speculation about what new treatments they could possibly get. (Everyone concluded that they wanted to share in Pete's treatment, an hour spent outside each day.) The sun slowly disappeared, leaving the back of the van in near-total darkness. Slowly, sleep rose to claim each one of them.
Anthony awoke to someone shaking his shoulder, begging him to get up, up, up! As his eyes cracked open, he saw that it was Momo, a bright, innocent grin plastered across her face.
"We're here!"
Here they were indeed. He and Hollow were the last ones out of the vehicle, joining the rest of the children. Green Valley Mental Asylum was far larger than Hathmoore with its three floors, and it seemed almost double the length. There was a large stone wall surrounding the building with heavy ironwork gates set in front just like at Hathmoore. Anthony spared a moment to look around at his friends. Tommy was hanging onto Edward's arm while Charlotte and stood next to Annabelle, Momo running over to join the girls as soon as she woke Anthony. Pete and Niccolo stood around the group, standing as tall as they could in an effort to look mature and strong. A new nurse came out of the building, her name tag read Hilda, and ushered them inside.
"The rest of the residents are split between their treatments and studying at the moment," Hilda said, guiding them through the maze of halls and stairs. "You'll be able to meet them in a while. You will have the rest of this block to readjust and get settled into Green Valley. It's also the fourth of July, so almost everyone is exempt from their chores. Later today we will continue your treatment plan as originally conceived at Hathmoore, then in a few days we will review the treatment plans to see if they are actually helping." Another nurse took the girls down one hallway and Hilda continued leading the boys down another.
They entered the boys' dorm which was practically identical to the one at Hathmoore except it had almost triple the number of beds and was far cleaner. None of the mattresses appeared stained or moldy, and the floors actually looked half sanitary. Hilda directed them each to a free bed where they could start unpacking their things. Compared to the Green Valley pillowcases, theirs looked like glorified coffee rags. There was one flower vase at the far end of the room, filled with dying roses and colored a deep, semi-clear blue.
"We'll be getting all of you new hospital gowns and socks as well," Hilda said. "Another nurse will bring those by later. We'll see if we can find shoes for you all as well, it wouldn't do for you all to do your outside chores barefoot." Anthony and Pete were the only two children who still had their shoes, having been able to hold onto them throughout the room raids by only ever taking them off to bathe, and even then they were left in the care of the other.
"Thank you. ma'am." Pete said for the group. He smiled at her as well, a polite smile that Anthony could remember seeing on students back when he went to school.
"It's no trouble. Now, which of you are Anthony and Niccolo?" Anthony raised his hand first, tentatively, while Niccolo's shot up once Anthony started. "Good. You two and one of the girls will be getting reevaluated treatment plans first since you're the highest candidates for the surgery." The room went deathly still.
"What kind of surgery?" Niccolo asked.
Hilda just shook her head. "We'll discuss that when the time comes. Just focus on settling in today." Hollow was at Anthony's side in an instant, grasping his hand. Hilda left shortly after that, leaving the room in a tense silence.
Anthony already knew what surgery she had been referring to, and could guess which of the girls was on the chopping block as well. Doctor Borris had his heart set on lobotomizing all of them from the start, there was no doubt in Anthony's mind after everything he had seen, so it made sense he would have made several notes on the topic. The other imaginary friends were looking at each other wildly.
"We don't tell anyone," Niccolo said, voice dark. "This stays between the five of us for now, okay?"
"But why would-" Edward started before his face fell. "He didn't- Do you mean-" They had told the entire group of what Doctor Borris had done, what he had planned to do (though they left the events of other timelines out of it, a conversation for another time.) Tommy started tearing up, quickly throwing himself into Smudge's arms.
Another child entered the room at that point, adding to the tense atmosphere. They had a small pale blue imaginary friend trailing them, a rabbit-doll hybrid that just barely reached their knees, but paid them no mind. Slowly, more and more children trickled in. Some had imaginary friends, others didn't, but none of them looked happy. The conversation ended there, but there was a silent understanding that they would pick it up later.
Later came in the form of breakfast the next morning. The day had been a mess completely off of the regular schedule that Green Valley followed because of the holiday, but treatments waited for nothing and no one. Anthony was led to a new room with an all too familiar setup and sent spiraling into the pitch-black void just as he had been for ages now. It never left him feeling better. He and several of the others missed dinner because of the late treatment plans so they were given a small meal of toast and sent to bed. On their way back, they saw several adult patients as well. They were kept in separate areas, but it still piqued his interest.
At breakfast they were given a very welcome surprise, meals were not divided by gender. They got their trays of food (more toast and a thing of grey porridge) and went to a table in the back where the girls were already huddled together, their imaginary friends hanging around them just like they had at Hathmoore.
"How was your first night?" Annabelle asked. "Doesn't look like anyone got much sleep." It was true, the permanent eye bags they all had were markedly more pronounced than usual.
"I will say," Polo said. "If nothing else, the beds are actually comfortable to lay on."
"It helps when they aren't cut open and spilling out stuffing." Edward dug back, mood already sour. "The food still sucks."
"At least they split the wet mush and the crunch into separate foods," Charlotte said. "Those textures should never go together."
Tommy shook his head vigorously, agreeing.
The conversation reached a lull and Anthony grabbed his chance. He cleared his throat, looked around to be sure that no nurses were looking (the noise of the other patients would cover their words as long as they weren't too close), and stated very simply: "We need to leave."
Everyone stared at him.
"What do you mean?" Pixie asked.
"We need to escape. We can't stay here, they're going to hurt us."
"What do you mean?" Pooky asked, voice reaching the dangerous low that his protective tendencies inspired.
Anthony shot a quick apologetic look at Niccolo before continuing. "They mentioned that at least three of us are priority candidates for surgery."
"A lobotomy," Annabelle answered, saying the cursed word aloud.
"Did they say who?" Charlotte asked.
"Me, Anthony, and one of you three," Niccolo said, shooting Anthony a quick look. "But it's safe to assume everyone is somewhere on their list. Doctor Borris didn't exactly have a soft spot for any of us.
"We need to escape as soon as possible." Anthony joined in.
"How would we even pull it off?" Twistee asked.
"Yeah," Smudge agreed. "and where would we go afterward?"
"I don't know, but anywhere has to be better than here, right?"
Marco nodded. "The lad has a point."
"We don't even know if that's possible though," Polo said. "We don't know this place well enough, just that there's a large wall around the place."
"And it's not like we can explore." Momo pouted.
Pete perked up. "I can, a little. When they take me outside for my treatment, they let me walk around. I could scope out any weak spots in the wall. Maybe any places we can climb it?"
"And it's not like they can stop us from exploring," Hollow added, addressing the other imaginary friends. "We can practically go wherever we'd like.
"Still, this all seems rather perilous," Polo said.
Pixie scoffed. "Like just sitting around is any safer? What are you, scared?"
"I am not!" Polo bit back. "I'm just concerned for Niccolo. He's still recovering from almost dying."
Niccolo turned to face Polo. "Still, I survived, and I'm not too keen on staying here for the rest of my life."
A loud bell rang throughout the cafeteria causing Tommy to hold his hands over his ears until it stopped. The other patients started leaving, indicating that they were out of time.
"We can talk more about this at lunch," Niccolo said. "Until then, everyone keep an eye open for anything that might be useful.
Reluctantly each child made their way to the different treatment rooms. Anthony was with a small group of other children also going in for injections. His nerves steadily rose as he waited his turn. There hadn't been much fear the last time, but memories of the Ghost, of Doctor Borris, hunched over him with a knife at the ready, and camera already filming started resurfacing as different doctors came out to collect their patients. It had just been mean, uncaring nurses that had put him under for so long. The thought of a doctor being there as he fell into the black void-
Hollow grabbed his hand. "I'll be there the whole time. If anyone tries anything, I'll stop them."
Anthony smiled. He and Hollow may not share the same telepathic connection that Smudge and Tommy had, but she was exceptionally good at reading him. Spending several lifetimes together would do that.
Notes:
A quick thing as we wrap up this first chapter! Imaginary Friend Asylum and the events within take place right before the extinction of “Asylums” in America in exchange for mental health hospitals. It’s also important to note that “The economic crisis of the 1930s drastically cut state appropriations, and World War II created acute shortages of personnel.” (Penn Nursing) The treatments that the children would receive at this new asylum would be virtually identical to the one that they left, as while the treatment of the staff varied from institution to institution, the science and medicinal beliefs did not.
It should also be noted that “While many of the points raised…could easily lead to the belief that the asylum was a dreadful fate for children, in one or two cases it may have provided a better environment than the community from which they came.” (Cambridge) Though I would like to draw attention to the “one or two” mentioned. In the same Cambridge paper, it states that out of 195 children admitted to the asylum, only 52 were ever discharged as cured. 52 were transferred to a long-stay ward, 21 were transferred to another hospital, 21 had unrecorded fates, and 49 died. Based off of these numbers (which are not wholly representative, but it’s the best I could find while writing this chapter), you had nearly the same chance of being discharged as winding up dead.
All this to say, I don’t believe that the new asylum that the children are sent to would have been that much of an improvement (though if nothing else at least they’re not trying to dodge an axe wielding murderer). Even if it was, the children are not in any sort of state to accept that immediately. I’m sure in the canon ending some of them go on to be declared “cured” and live their lives as normal, however at least two of the children would have been confined to long term or even permanent residence.
With all that being said, this is also just because I wanted them all to recreate the Boxcar Children and be a happy little family in the woods. I just get really into the detailing of these things. I hope y’all enjoy!!Also yes, Tommy has albinism :D
Sources:
Penn Nursing: https://www.nursing.upenn.edu/nhhc/nurses-institutions-caring/history-of-psychiatric-hospitals/
PBS: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/lobotomist-bedlam-1946/
Cambridge: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/psychiatric-bulletin/article/forgotten-children-children-admitted-to-a-county-asylum-between-1854-and-1900/6FE6A938417E117286805ED68BBA8DDC
Chapter Text
After waking up from his treatment, Anthony groggily went to the cafeteria for food. Lunch was the same slightly stale toast, but this time with wilting lettuce and bland cheese mashed in between the slices. He could see Pooky standing in the corner they had been that morning, so he and Hollow made their way over there. He was one of the last few to arrive, Edward and Tommy being the only two still missing.
Annabelle and Charlotte were still shivering from their ice baths, Pooky looking on longingly, no doubt wishing he could set a small fire to warm them quicker.
"Took you long enough," Annabelle said through chattering teeth. "We're just waiting on the brothers now."
"Either way, has anyone had any thoughts since this morning?" Pete asked. "Like, anything we can do to scout out this place?"
"We have a plan!" Momo said eagerly, gesturing to the other two girls.
"Dolly and Pixie will look around tonight and see what security is like," Charlotte said.
Dolly jumped up and down a little bit. "We thought about what you said, Hollow. We can go wherever we'd like and the adults can't see us, so it makes sense that we would be the ones to look. Plus, I can try and find some new sewing needles."
"We figured it out in the ice baths," Charlotte said.
Pixie did a small flip of her hair and grinned. "And I volunteered as soon as I heard about the plan. The girls' beds are all close enough that Pooky can keep an eye on the three of them while we scout things out."
Niccolo looked quite pleased with the arrangement. "That works out well. Polo, would you be able to help them?"
"No." He said almost instantly. "The last time I left your side you almost died."
Marco nodded solemnly. "Aye. I would be more than happy to help, but I have a bad feeling about some o' the others in the boy's dorm. It wouldn't feel right leaving Petey all alone there."
A loud bang caught everyone off guard, ending the debate. The cafeteria door had been flung open and a sobbing Tommy was being pulled into the room by a nurse. She said something to him and left him near the food line. The moment she let go of him, he raced towards their corner, Smudge following along as fast as he could. Tommy threw himself into the first person he saw, Charlotte.
"What happened? Where's Edward?" She asked. The others were all on high alert now as well. Tommy often came out of his treatment in tears (being shocked repeatedly will do that to you) but Edward always found him as soon as treatments were over and helped him to calm down. The brothers were inseparable.
"He fought with one of the nurses," Smudge said, voice low and solemn. "They were being a meanie and kept yelling at Tommy, trying to pull him into the room for his treatment. She pulled so hard it hurt." Sure enough, when Anthony cast a glance at Tommy's arms, there was the fading imprint of an adult's hands wrapped around one of them. "Then Edward showed up. He shoved the nurse away from Tommy and started yelling at her to leave him alone. Two other nurses had to drag him away. He's in a punishment room. Twistee is with him." Tommy let out another choked sob and Smudge hugged him as well.
Charlotte tightened her hold on Tommy, glancing at Dolly with wild eyes. "It's going to be okay, Twistee will keep him safe." She whispered to their youngest.
"He'll probably be there for the rest of the day," Niccolo said. "We can talk more about the plan when he's back. For now, focus on learning what you can. Every little bit helps."
The rest of the passed as uneventfully as could be expected. The boys were set on chores for the afternoon while the girls were sent to lessons. They spent dinner whispering mundane observations to each other, wary of the nurse standing right behind them. It was a tense, sideways day made even worse by Edward's absence. When night fell, the tension grew.
While their first night at Green Valley had passed uneventfully, Anthony couldn't help but notice there were a dozen more eyes on them. Marco wasn't the only one who had a bad feeling about the boys' dorm. Hollow had sat down on the foot of Anthony's bed and was glaring at anyone who got too close to them, whether they could see her or not. Marco and Polo stood next to their children, arms crossed, while Smudge and Tommy were sitting at the head of their bed, curled around each other.
None of the other children seemed outright violent, but there was one group in particular that kept giving them odd looks, older boys with only one imaginary friend among them, a hulking pale blue beast with one sharp horn sitting askew on his head. They kept to the opposite end of the room to where the boys were loosely clustered, but Anthony wouldn't bet on them staying there forever. A nurse came in to declare lights out and left them all sitting in darkness, the faint light of the moon their only illumination. Anthony crept under his covers and attempted to fall asleep, allowing the night to slip away.
The next time his eyes slid open, it was still pitch black. It could have been a few seconds or minutes or hours, but that wasn't what mattered. Tommy was crying again, loud wails that seemed to bounce off the walls. Other children were tossing and turning, no doubt awoken by his cries. Usually, when something like this happened, Edward would crawl into bed with Tommy and help soothe him back to sleep (in fact, they had been in the same bed the previous night). However, there was no Edward tonight. This wasn't the first time Tommy had night terrors while Edward was trapped in the Punishment Cell, and Smudge had been able to soothe him those nights, however, this time the entire room was wrong, and it wasn't only his friends who he was waking up.
Anthony climbed out of bed to try and offer Tommy some comfort the same time one of the older boys had stalked over.
"Shut up, will you!" He said somewhere between a harsh whisper and a yell. "You'll get the nurses on our ass if you keep this up, and some of us are trying to sleep."
Unsurprisingly, this didn't help. Tommy curled tighter into a ball and his sobs grew louder. Anthony approached the bed, brushing past the older boy. He settled on the edge and glanced at Smudge, asking permission to touch Tommy. Smudge nodded emphatically, allowing Anthony to join in rubbing circles on his back.
"I said, shut up!" The older boy said, voice loud enough to fill the room.
"Can I drag him away?" Hollow asked.
Anthony shook his head, whispering "No. That would just make him madder."
Loud footsteps grabbed Anthony's attention and he looked up just in time to see the older boy, who had been stalking towards Tommy's bed, getting cut off by Niccolo. There was a glint in the moonlight, Niccolo's knife. It was pointing at the boy.
"Leave him alone." Was all Niccolo said.
"What the fuck?" The older boy said, jumping back. The light blue imaginary friend approached, towering over his kid's friend, and Polo followed suit, Marco also standing behind Niccolo, holding his hook hands in the moonlight.
"Leave him alone," Niccolo repeated. "We'll calm him down. You stay out of it."
The older boy stared at the knife for a moment longer before turning back towards his bed. "Just get him to shut up."
Niccolo made sure he walked all the way back before going back to his bed and putting the knife in its hiding place under the mattress. He grabbed something else and walked back over to Tommy and Anthony.
"Tommy, do you need something to cuddle?" He asked, voice softer than Anthony had ever heard it.
Tommy nodded, another choked sob making its way out.
"You can cuddle this," Niccolo said, holding out the stuffed rabbit that Charlotte had made him. Tommy reached out hesitantly and took it, squeezing it in a hug. Niccolo also sat on the edge of the bed, though he stayed silent and still. Several minutes later, the sobs had trickled to a slow end. Tommy looked at the two of them with a small smile before tunneling under his covers.
"Tommy says thank you," Smudge whispered.
Notes:
While referring to a padded cell as a "punishment room" and using it specifically to punish the patients is a thing I hope was exclusive to Hathmoore, padded cells were and still are commonly used to contain aggressive patients (or prisoners depending on the location) who are deemed to be at risk to themselves or others. Even assuming that the nurses don't use it as a "punishment", Edward lashing out at the nurses, both verbally and physically, would absolutely warrant being deemed a risk to others.
Also, I can't remember if Marco ever does refer to Pete as "Petey", but it's such a piratey thing to do that I have to have him do it.
Chapter Text
The next time Anthony woke up, sunlight was streaming into the room. Tommy was making his bed with Niccolo's rabbit tucked securely under his arm and the other two boys were whispering. Anthony paid them no mind, instead focusing on the stare-down Hollow was having with the light blue imaginary friend from last night. No, that wasn't right. Not a stare down, a conversation. They stood a few feet from his bed, the blue imaginary friend towering over Hollow.
"Just stay out of their way pipsqueak. The second Davey gives me the word I can snap you in half like a toothpick." They growled, puffing out their chest to appear even bigger.
Hollow glared back. "Just because I'm small that doesn't mean I can't put up a fight. I've killed people before."
"Sure you have."
"You want to bet?" Hollow threatened.
Anthony got out of bed and rested a hand on her shoulder. "Hollow, we can't be starting fights."
"Fine." She said, turning sharply away. "Let's just get ready."
Once again meeting in their corner of the cafeteria, the children held their breath for a few minutes, waiting for Edward to walk through the doors and join them. Eventually, they had to stop waiting and move on with planning.
"He'll be back by lunch," Niccolo said to Tommy, pulling the younger boy closer to himself in a kind of half hug.
"Anyways," Momo said, "Pixie found something really important last night!"
Pixie stepped forward. "Security is pretty similar to Hathmoore. Nurses patrol the halls at night with flashlights, but there are a lot less of them."
"But that's not really a good thing," Dolly said, head low and fiddling with her hands. "Because all the doors are locked. The front gate is too, I saw the groundskeeper locking it through a window."
Pete cleared his throat. "Actually, the gate may not be that big of a hurdle."
That caught Anthony's attention, pulling him away from the glorified slop. "What do you mean?"
"Well, this whole place is surrounded by a wall, right?" All the kids nodded. "I double-checked it while I was outside yesterday. The entire top of the wall is flat. It's high, but I'm pretty sure Pooky or Twistiee could lift us to the top! Then we can just jump down and run."
"What about Niccolo?" Polo interjected. "He's still injured."
"Pooky can carry him." Annabelle smiled, looking at her friend. "You'd be okay doing that, right Pooky?"
"Of course," Pooky replied.
"But that doesn't do us any good if we can't get out of the building," Niccolo said. "We need the key to the door."
"Pixie and Dolly can keep looking for it at night!" Charlotte chimed in.
"Dolly or Pooky could even go searching while we're in the baths," Annabelle added. "They can take turns watching us!"
Momo rested her head in her hands and smiled. "I can't believe we could actually pull this off! The first thing I'm doing once we get out is playing on the swings again."
"We'll be looking for decent food," Smudge said.
"I want to go back to school, or at least visit a library again." Pete sighed.
Charlotte stuck her tongue out. "You liked school?"
"You didn't?" He asked.
Tommy perked up. "Tommy says there is a library here.!" Smudge said for him.
"Really?" Pete asked, eyes shining.
"Yep! Tommy says that it's not very good, but that's where kids do their studying. It also has all the crayons!"
The bell rang, sending everyone away once again. However, there was a spring in their steps this time. Their freedom was becoming more of a reality every step of the way.
Anthony felt himself waking up again. Prying his eyes open from the coma, instead of Hollow's familiar face greeting him there was a strange doctor with a long mustache and receding hairline. He flinched awake but was careful to not let it show too much.
"Hello, Anthony." The doctor said. "I'd like to have a word with you in my office. Will you follow me, please?"
It wasn't like he had a choice. Anthony looked around for Hollow and calmed down when he saw her standing near the door, glaring at the man. Reluctantly, Anthony lifted himself off the table and followed the man into a room labeled "Dr. Harrington".
The room would have been completely non-threatening if it hadn't felt so much like Dr. Boris' office. The same shades of beige coated every surface, familiar furniture and books sending chills down Anthony's spine. Dr. Harrington motioned for him to take a seat on a couch and he complied, Hollow staying glued to his side. Her hand found its way into his and she squeezed, a silent reassurance that she was there. The doctor wouldn't be able to touch him.
"So, Anthony. We're checking to see that your treatments are working, so please answer each question honestly." That's what this was. The reevaluation to see if he would be lobotomized or not.
"Yes sir," Anthony answered. Better to seem overly polite than withdrawn.
"Good. Now, please tell me why you were admitted to Hathmoore Children's Asylum."
Anthony had to take a deep breath and squeeze Hollow's hand. "I tried to kill myself." It was the ugly truth, no way around it.
"But why." The doctor prompted.
Anthony knew the reason, how could he not, but he didn't respond right away. Any mention of Hollow would surely condemn him. He had to try and remember what the chart had said, why they thought he had attempted.
"Because... a boy died." He finally said. "He died, and I was so sad that I couldn't go on."
"Why were you so sad? Were you friends?"
"No," Anthony said before he could stop the words from falling off his tongue.
"But your parents mentioned that you two would hang out all the time." That was one way to put the constant bullying and harassment that the boy and his friends had brought to Anthony's life. "And if you weren't friends, why would you be sad?"
"I-" Anthony stopped again, trying to gather his thoughts. A glance at Hollow revealed that she was just as lost as he was. In a split second, Anthony chose a lie. "I wanted to be his friend. I wanted to be friends with him, but he never liked me. I guess that's why."
Dr. Harrington made several notes on a sheet of paper. "Since you were admitted last January, have you seen anything strange? Figures out of the corner of your eye? People who aren't there? Friends who aren't there?"
"No." Anthony insisted. "Nothing at all."
Dr. Harrington smiled. A dark, sad smile. "That's where I know you're lying." Anthony froze. "You see, I've been observing you and your friends. You all have a habit of directing questions at thin air and laughing out of nowhere. You all look in directions where no one is there for periods of time and even pretend to interact with these hallucinations. You've been doing it since you entered this room."
Anthony let go of Hollow's hand, cold dread slowly gripping his heart. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Furthermore," Dr. Harrington continued. "I looked into the death of your 'friend'. It was quite a violent death." He pulled a file from the table at his side. "Police reports say that his skull and several other bones were crushed. It was no accident and no suicide, and in addition, there were footprints found embedded in his skin. Child-sized footprints."
Anthony's stomach was threatening to abandon ship. He knew this all already, he still heard the sounds of Hollow killing the boy in his dreams every night. "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that while I don't believe you had a hand in your friend's death, you're not a violent patient, you absolutely know more than you let on. The guilt is crushing you and causing you to hallucinate your dead, almost friend as a sort of guardian angel."
"You're wrong." Anthony bit back, fists digging into the cushion he sat on.
"I know it's hard to hear, but it is the truth." Dr. Harrington said. "Therefore, based upon previous recommendations by your former care facility and my own assessment I'm prescribing you a lobotomy. It will get rid of the guilt causing you to hallucinate like this, finally allowing you peace.
The world felt numb. This couldn't be happening, not again.
"You're current treatment plan will continue until next week, when we're able to perform the lobotomy." Dr. Harrington grabbed some paper and signed it. "That is all for now, you can enjoy your free time."
Anthony staggered out of the doctor's office, mind numb and buzzing. They had to escape now, there was no other way. Hollow had returned to holding his hand and was gently guiding him back to the dorms. About halfway there, he started to register what she was saying. Dozens of reassurances, promises that she would tear down the doors herself before letting them touch him. It was a nice sentiment, enough to clear the haze in his mind. By the time they arrived back at the dorms, Anthony was beginning to feel like himself again. Sure, this was less than ideal, but at the very least they had a week to find the keys. That was better than nothing.
The dorm was almost completely empty aside from Niccolo and Polo sitting hunched over their bed. At the sound of the door opening, Niccolo jolted to attention, staring directly at him. Polo seemed to sink into himself out of relief. Something unusual from the ever-confident performer.
"Anthony? What are you doing?" Niccolo asked. His eyes were shaking and unfocused, trying to pull away from Anthony to the large shard of semi-clear, blue glass clenched in his hand. One look at the end of the room showed the glass vase shattered across the floor.
"I just came back from a meeting with one of the doctors. They're going to do the surgery."
Niccolo chuckled. "Well, at least we're not alone. Dr. Harrington said I need it as well." A scowl crossed his face and he set the shard of glass aside. "Apparently the kid from last night, Joseph, snitched on my knife. I'm a 'danger to myself and others' and need 'more intense intervention'. It's scheduled for the tenth, the first of next week."
Chapter Text
Anthony's stomach dropped. Not only did that mean the timeline had moved up, but he wasn't the only one on the chopping block. If they didn't get out, if Niccolo got lobotomized, it would be his fault, again. The fate they had tried so hard to save the others from would swallow them whole, taking him as well.
"Anthony? Keep breathing." Hollow's voice cut through the racing thoughts. "We've got this. The escape will work."
Forcing deep breaths, Anthony pulled himself back into reality. "Did they confiscate the knife? Is that why you have the glass?"
"The- oh," Niccolo said, still shaken and spaced out. "Yes, yes that's exactly why. We can't be unarmed in here. Not with Joseph and his goons on our backs." He shoved the shard of glass under his pillow and stood up, never looking at Polo once. "I'm going to start heading for the cafeteria. It's going to be lunchtime soon."
Niccolo left, but Polo didn't follow, not right away. He stood for a moment before approaching Anthony and pulling him into a loose hug. "Thank you." Then, without another word, he followed Niccolo out the door.
After a few moments, Anthony asked, "What was that about? I don't think I've seen Polo hug anyone. Ever."
Hollow frowned, and then her face fell slack as she realized something. "Do you remember Niccolo's chart? What it said about his admission?"
"I didn't memorize it." Anthony grabbed the chart from the foot of Niccolo's bed. He read the description, then paused and doubled back. "Patient had mutilated his own person on numerous occasions... You don't- You think he-"
"Those charts aren't trustworthy." Hollow was quick to say. "But, it's not something we can rule out."
"Why couldn't Polo just stop him? It's obvious he wanted to if that really is what's happening. Why-"
"If Niccolo had specifically asked for Polo to not stop him, Polo can't. If Imaginary Friends weren't beholden to the wants of their kid, Pooky would have burned down Hathmoore long before we even knew its name. We have free will, but we can't act against your wishes. Not directly, anyway."
The thought was both comforting and nauseating. Especially in this context. Hollow held Anthony's hand again, squeezing it lightly.
"Look, this is a battle for another day. Right now we need to focus on getting out of here. After that, we can get all mushy and talk about feelings and healing and whatever. Niccolo's okay for now, focus on that."
Their corner of the lunchroom was bright with excitement and whispers by the time Anthony arrived. He squeezed into a spot next to Pete.
"What's up?"
"Dolly found the key ring!" Pete whispered back, eyes shining.
Charlotte leaned over the table, "And she knows which key works! She got lucky and saw one of the nurses doing a demonstration for another staff member! All we have to do is get it again."
The good news was much needed. Anthony shot Niccolo a look across the table, their eyes met in relief.
Charlotte perked up, looking over Anthony's shoulder. "Annabelle is here." She had a smile on her face and slipped into a spot next to Momo.
"I just came back from my evaluation." Annabelle grinned. "They decided that since I've been 'stable' for so long they're going to try another treatment before the surgery." Then, to Niccolo and Anthony, "You'll probably get called in next."
"Actually," Anthony began, "We have already." The other kids leaned forward in their seats. Anthony felt sick.
Niccolo spoke instead. "He's supposed to go under late next week. I'm due on the tenth." He said it as flippantly as possible, holding his collected persona together with tape.
"The tenth!?" Momo cried. "But it's the seventh, that means-"
"We've only got two days." Niccolo finished her thought. Tommy whimpered and leaned into him, hugging his arm.
The rest of the Imaginary Friends all looked at each other, sharing looks that Anthony couldn't quite interpret, but recognized from Hollow.
"Which means," Annabelle said, smile gone, "We're leaving as soon as we get that key. Dolly, when do you think you can snag it."
"I'm not sure." She said, voice regretful. "I don't know the nurses' schedule."
"She can look for it tonight," Pooky said. "Then take the key tomorrow night, right before lights out. That's when we make our move."
"What about Edward?" Smudge asked. "We can't go without him."
Marco nodded "Aye, ye don't leave a fellow sailor behind. 'Tisn't right."
"He's due back soon," Niccolo said. "He was put in yesterday before lunch, right?"
"How can you be sure?" Momo asked. "They could keep him longer."
"I asked a couple of other kids during free time yesterday. They said it's only supposed to be for twenty-four hours as long as you behave."
"So we don't start to worry unless he's not back by dinner?" Pixie said.
"Exactly."
A beat of silence passed, everyone, taking a pause to eat some of the slop."How come-" Annabelle spoke up. "How come you two have to get it? I don't understand."
"It's because I-" Anthony paused, heart jumping at the realization that he had to tell them what happened. Why he's there. The information was freely available on his chart, but having to say it felt... monumental. "It's because of why I was admitted." That was easier to say.
"One of the other boys ratted me out," Niccolo grumbled.
"For what?" Charlotte asked.
"He was being a jerk, so I made him back off. He told them about my knife. They took that and decided I was a ‘danger to myself and others’.” Niccolo rolled his eyes.
Annabelle just stared back, slack-jawed. “You pulled a knife on him!?”
“He was threatening Tommy!” Niccolo threw his hands up. “What was I supposed to do?”
”Not that?!” Annabelle exclaimed. “Why did you even have a knife?”
“Not the point,” Niccolo said.
Annabelle looked like she was going to say something else, but was cut off by the bell.
”We can talk more at dinner.” Pete said. “For now, let’s make sure that we’ve got all our stuff ready to go.”
The boys made their way to the dorms, Niccolo and Anthony each holding one of Tommy’s hands. Pete had run to the library to grab a book, something he said would help them a lot when they got out.
When they entered the room, Tommy went straight for his bed and pulled out the stash of crayons he had started accumulating. All the boys had kept their pillowcases from Hathmoore and figured they could use those again to bring anything.
”We should pack light.” Hollow said to the group. “Especially since we’ll be climbing over the wall.”
“Climbing what now?” A familiar voice said, cutting through the room.
Tommy dropped his pillowcase and ran straight for the door, hugging Edward like his life depended on it. The others followed suit, rushing over to their friend with large smiles filling their faces.
Notes:
Hollow coming in with the tough love wombo-combo here! She's so blunt but trying to be tactful while also trying to guide Anthony along, I love her. Also, again I have a calendar of 1949 pulled up and at the ready so we'll see how long I can keep this realistic before giving up :P
I'm not in love with how this chapter came out, but sometimes you just have to power through the awkward bits to move the story along. Next chapter will have a lot more, I promise!
In case anyone is curious! They let Annabelle off for now because aside from still talking with Pooky, to their knowledge, she's pretty much fine. Niccolo is still extremely standoffish and unpersonable to most everyone, along with his
Chapter Text
“Okay, let me make sure I’ve got this straight,” Edward said, sitting on his bed. Tommy was curled in his lap, Twistee sitting to one side and Smudge on the other. “Tomorrow night we’re going to steal the key to the door, then climb over the wall and run. And this is happening tomorrow because the lobotomies got scheduled.”
“Exactly,” Pete said. “Any later and-“ he cut himself off, glancing at Niccolo. The fate awaiting them hung heavily, a thick cloud weighing down upon them.
“Twistee, do you think you’ll be able to get everyone over the fence?” Niccolo asked.
Twistee grinned. “Of course I can! What do you take me for, a weakling?”
”Certainly not.” Polo said eagerly, earning a chuckle from Marco and a light slap on the arm from Hollow.
Anthony cleared his throat. “Anyways, don’t let the other kids get under your skin. No matter what they do. Especially after the stunt they pulled last night."
“What do you mean?” Edward asked, looking between them.
The boys all shared a look, debating whether knowing or not knowing about the near fight would make him more upset. Edward was in no way irrational in his anger, but it was fiercely passionate, especially when it involved his brother. It was an endearing trait, but they needed total concentration on the escape for it to succeed. Tommy grabbed Smudge's hand, giving him a meaningful stare.
“Tommy says that last night, he was having a nightmare. After he woke up he couldn’t stop crying, and another boy yelled at him to stop.” Smudge said.
Edward’s face dropped and a fierce protectiveness filled his eyes. “What?”
“I told Joseph to back off and he listened,” Niccolo added, jumping in to keep Edward from blowing his top.
“He’s lucky I wasn’t there,” Edward said, hugging Tommy tighter to his chest. “I would have just pummeled him.”
Pete shook his head. "But, you can't do that." He said emphatically. Out of the corner of his eye, Anthony saw another group of kids enter the dorms. The worst possible group that could have shown up right about now. "We all have to behave. We can't escape if one of us is locked up. No one is getting left behind."
"What’s this about an escape?”
Everyone turned towards Joseph's voice.
The entire gang stood there, including “Davey” and his Imaginary Friend. Most had sickeningly familiar grins, sending a shiver down Anthony's spine. He knew what that look meant, even if he hadn't already encountered them several times before. It was the same look every bully in his old town wore when they wanted to mess with him. Really mess with him. Hollow set her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it lightly. Anthony glanced back at the rest of his friends. Pete had frozen and was glancing between the group. Niccolo and Edward however, stared back with steel in their eyes. Tommy was gently nudged off Edward's lap as he stood to full height, just a few inches shorter than Joseph.
“Mind your own business and fuck off.” Niccolo scowled, following Edward's lead and standing up to face them.
"Now, now, let's not be hasty here. It's not every day I hear the new kids planning an escape. I'm sure the staff would be very interested to hear about this."
Niccolo stepped forward. "You better keep your mouth shut or-"
”Or what?” Joseph smirked, cutting him off. “You’re not so tough without that knife. You’re what, eight? I’m almost thirteen.” He said the number like it was some monumental achievement. “I’d love to see you try and take me.”
Polo scoffed. “Ignorant brat. Couldn’t win a fight if he tried. All bark and no bite if you ask me.”
“Aye, he looks like he could barely raise the sails,” Marco added.
The “Davey” kid leaned over to Joseph. “Their Friends look really strong. They’re all glaring at us, talking about how you'd lose the fight. Zoob says that one of them claims to have killed someone before. The one with that kid.” He pointed at Anthony. "Maybe we shouldn't-"
”Shut up, David.” Joseph spat. “They’re just bluffing.”
Pete cleared his throat. “Why do you believe him?”
”Excuse me?” Joseph asked.
Pete froze under Joseph's sudden glare but quickly regained his composure. ”What friends are he talking about? I'm not seeing anyone." Pete said, looking to the boys for corroboration. A smattering of agreement broke out among them. (Including Polo cheering on the performance.)
"Yeah, are you sure he's not just hallucinating?” Niccolo added.
Joseph laughed. “Good try, but I’m not an idiot. When David started ranting about these ‘imaginary friends’, I asked for proof before I believed him. I’ve seen all sorts of things start floating in the air because Zoob picked them up. They're real, one hundred percent.”
"Alright," Edward said. "Then this shouldn't shock you much." He gave Twistee a nod.
Grabbing Joseph's wrists, Twistee lifted him into the air like he weighed nothing. Zoob stepped forward to cover David as the rest of the gang started freaking out.
"Leave him alone," Zoob growled, staring at Twistee with his large, unblinking eye.
"You're the ones who started it." Twistee shot back.
The two Imaginary Friends continued their arguing, slowly getting louder and louder until they were well into a shouting match. Meanwhile, the longer Joseph hung suspended in the hair the more frantic the boys got. The gang was now searching for something they could use to reach Joseph's wrists and pry him down. The Hathmoore boys watched as Joseph went from struggling and clawing at Twistee's hands to simply hanging there, muttering futile pleas to be put down. He may as well have been one of Charlotte's rag dolls the way he was hanging there.
"Then tell your kid and his friends to leave my kids alone!" Twistee screamed, grabbing the room's attention.
It wasn't uncommon for the Imaginary Friends to refer to them as "their" kids, Hollow had done it many times with Anthony, especially after explaining to him the nature of the relationship between children and Imaginary Friends. Hearing it come from Twistee now was especially comforting, even if Anthony wasn't included in the group.
"Do you promise to keep quiet?" Edward said, low and careful enough that it was almost lost in the chaos.
Joseph caught his eyes and nodded, tears slipping down his cheeks. "Yes, yes, we promise. All of us, right?" He looked back at his group.
They all clamored in agreement.
Edward looked to Niccolo first, a second opinion to see if their response was genuine. When they came to an agreement on the matter Edward turned his gaze to Twistee and gave a nod.
Slowly, Joseph is lowered to the ground. David is at his side instantly, along with two other boys and Zoob.
"You better keep that promise," Niccolo said. "If you don't, we'll know who to go after. And believe me, I'm not particularly scared about racking up a higher sentence."
The group doubled down on the promises and agreement to keep their mouths shut. They shuffled out of the room, desperate to lick their wounded pride in peace. Zoob shot the Hathmoore boys one final look, one full of malice and a dark promise, before following them out.
"Remind me to never get on your bad side," Pete said. "You guys are terrifying."
"Oh, it's far too late for that." Edward joked, going over and pulling Pete into a noogie. "We're just biding our time with you." Slowly the tension left the room as the boys began to laugh and joke around with one another.
That air of levity stayed with them the rest of the night, allowing some hope to bleed over into the next morning.
The day of the escape.
Chapter Text
The day passed slowly and painfully. All three meals were eaten in silence as they prepared for that night. Just as the bell rang dismissing them from dinner, they confirmed the time to leave.
One hour after lights out.
The boys' dorm was dead silent. Everyone else was fast asleep or laying still enough to pass as sleeping. Now was the time. Edward slowly climbed out of bed and reached for the pillowcase they had stashed beneath the bed. Tommy followed him, and their movement spurred the others onward as well. It took less than a minute for them to be ready to go. They were about to open the door when a hushed voice called after them.
"Wait."
They all turned to see David standing before them, Zoob still on the other end of the room but keeping track of their every move around the boy.
"Good luck," David whispered.
Niccolo recoiled like he had been struck. "What?"
"I know you didn't get the best impression of Joseph, but he's really not that bad. He'll never admit it, none of them will, but we're all rooting for you to make it."
In Edward's very professional opinion, at least the first half of that had been a lie. There was no universe where Joseph could be "not that bad" if he went around threatening crying children.
"Why would they want that?" Edward scoffed.
"None of us want to be here. If we had the guts and the manpower," his gaze flickered to the Imaginary Friends, "we would have tried to run long ago. But if you guys can make it, then maybe we can too."
Edward quickly squashed the pang of empathy he felt for the other boys. They had no time for that, especially not now.
"We appreciate it," Anthony said for the group. With that, he turned and led the way down the hall.
It was absolutely nerve-wracking to be slinking down the hall this way. Despite all his defiance, Edward had never had the guts to try sneaking around Hathmoore. Anthony was leading the way, guiding them all on when to start and stop, narrowly avoiding the nurses' flashlights at every turn. Edward squeezed Tommy's hand even tighter as they waited for a nurse to pass by the hall they needed to go down. He spared a glance behind him, seeing Pete and Niccolo huddled close to Tommy, all their Imaginary Friends making up the rear. Luckily, they had no need to sneak through the halls and could walk normally. Every so often he could see them making faces and rude gestures at the nurses out of the corner of his eye. If he wasn't one loud noise away from collapsing in panic, Edward would have found it extremely amusing.
When they finally came to the stairwell the girls were supposed to be at, Edward's soul momentarily froze as he saw it empty. However, Dolly's head peeked over the rail and motioned them over to the small, hollow space beneath the stairs, just like Hathmoore had. They couldn't risk being heard, so through a series of quick nods and gestures Annabelle passed Anthony the key and explained to him the pattern of the nurses that they had observed. After taking another moment to catch their breath, Anthony led them back into the halls.
They were getting close to the door, Edward could almost see it when knocking on a door halted their operation. All the children froze and Edward looked to where it was coming from. Polo was standing next to the door, grabbing the attention of all the nurses in the hall. They gathered around the door as he jogged over.
"One of them was going to change direction." He explained.
They continued onward.
When they finally reached the door, the group breathed a sigh of relief. There were no nurses in the immediate vicinity, probably because they didn't expect to need to guard the door. Despite relaxing slightly, Edward refused to let go of Tommy's hand.
"I'm going to make a distraction," Hollow said. "In case the door makes noise when it opens. When you hear the knocking, open it and start running. I'll catch up." She didn't wait for anyone to respond before taking off.
The noise began barely a few moments later. Hollow must have been throwing things at the doors to generate this much noise. It was a good thing too, because the door made a loud creak as Anthony pushed it open.
The warm night air felt incredible as they burst into the open. There was the hum of insects and a slight breeze. Edward almost stopped dead in his tracks as he saw the stars and an almost full moon hanging in the sky. It had been so long since he had seen the night sky through anything except a small window, and he had stopped doing that long ago anyway. Tommy pulling him along is what snapped him out of his stupor. Niccolo was the last to make it to the wall, holding his side after running for the first time since his injury.
"Youngest go first, oldest go last," Twistee said as he picked Tommy up and placed him at the top of the wall.
"How is he getting down?" Smudge asked.
Annabelle turned to Pooky. "Can you help him down to the other side?"
Pooky nodded. "I'll help everyone down once you're up there."
Twistee lifted Momo up at the same time. They continued like that uninterrupted; Pete, Charlotte, and Anthony making it to the top within a few minutes. All the imaginary friends, save Hollow, had followed their children. It was an amusing sight, seeing everyone crowded on top of the wall. Twistee reached for Edward next, seeing as he was the only eight-year-old left, but he shook his head.
"I'm staying until Niccolo gets over." The older boy was holding onto him for support, breathing heavily from the run and still clutching at his side.
Twistee's face scrunched in disagreement but lifted Annabelle up anyway. Polo climbed the wall after her. Niccolo went next and made it to the top when Hollow came running out of the building.
She arrived with a grim look on her face. "They just realized the girls are missing, we need to hurry."
Edward felt himself lifted in the air before she even finished her sentence. Pooky was waiting on the other side, arms open for him to jump into before being gently set on the ground. He found Tommy in the moonlight, grabbing his hand once again to show him he was there. Tommy had never been able to see well in the dark.
"We should all hold hands," Pixie suggested. "So we don't lose each other."
Marco shook her head. "That'll slow us down too much. If we get lost then we'll yell and track each other down."
Ringing bells cut through the night's white noise, accompanied by distant shouts.
"We need to go, now," Hollow said. She grabbed Anthony's hand and pulled the boy into the woods, spearheading the journey.
The rest of the group followed suit, except for Edward, Tommy, and Niccolo. Twistee was letting Smudge climb onto his back and Tommy crawl into his arms, knowing that the mixture of poor eyesight and short legs would leave them far behind the group.
"Can you run?" Polo asked, kneeling next to his kid.
Niccolo shook his head and stared at the ground. "Hurts too much. Maybe I should just stay back. Throw the adults off the trail."
"No way," Edward interjected. "You're coming with us whether you want to or not. Do you think you can carry him, Twistee?"
Puffing his chest out, Twistee smirked. "Of course! These two are light as air." He shifted Tommy into one arm and used the other to scoop Niccolo off the ground. After making sure the boy was settled, they ran after the rest of the group.
The mostly full moon was nothing short of a blessing, navigating these woods in the dark would have been near impossible. The shouts grew ever louder, even as they ran farther and farther away. A mixed chorus of their names, threats of punishment, and rewards if they came back immediately. All it did was spur Edward to run faster, ignoring the stitch in his side and exhaustion flooding his limbs. He lost track of how long they had been running, only vaguely realizing the progress they had made when they finally met up with the rest of the group. Momo and Pete had also been picked up by their Imaginary Friends.
Eventually, Hollow stopped running in front of a cave, signaling for the others to stop as well. Edward bent over, desperately gasping for air.
"I think we can stay here for the night. We should be far enough away for now."
"Oh thank god," Anthony said, lying down right in the middle of the clearing.
Twistee set all three of his charges down, letting them sit down as well. Marco and Pixie followed suit and before long everyone was sitting or lying on the ground gazing up at the sky. Edward finally had a chance to take in the night sky, basking in its majesty. If he was any good with words, there was certainly some poetry that could be written about the moment. The glimmering lights reflected the small hope emerging within him for the first time in over a year. Unfortunately, none of the Bennetts had ever been particularly good with words, so Edward just let the feeling fizzle in his chest. He could hear some sniffling coming from where the girls had sat together and fought not to join them.
Chapter 7
Notes:
I may update this later with a bunch of changes... just a forewarning
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Eventually, they moved into the small cave. Twistee gathered a large pile of sticks and branches which Pooky lit on fire, staving away the slight chill of summer nights. The children fell asleep quickly, only waking up when their stomachs decided it was time to find food. To the children's delight, Dolly revealed several loaves of bread she had carried on their escape. A bit of treasure was found while searching for the key initially. Pixie was quick to point out her own involvement in the scheme, giving their kids something to laugh about. Charlotte always liked starting the day with a smile. It had been so hard to do for the past two years trapped within Hathmoore, but now everything felt fresh and new. Like if she tried hard enough, she could even grow wings and fly.
The children spent almost the entire day walking, trying to put as much distance between them and Green Valley as possible. That night was spent under a large oak tree without a fire, though it was warm enough that no one complained. After another day of walking, they found a second cave to spend the night. This one much larger than the first. The bread was running low, but Pete produced something unexpected; a book.
"It's the Boy Scouts handbook! This has all sorts of information about plants we can eat and other survival tips. We don't have to worry about food." Pete said. He puffed out his chest with pride, beaming at the rest of the group.
However, Charlotte furrowed her brow. "We can't live off of plants alone though. We need bread and meat."
"We lived off of the gruel just fine," Niccolo grumbled. "I don't see why plants would have less nutrition than that.
"It's not less, just a different kind."
The chatter continued from there, several of the group crowding around Pete to try and read the handbook (Or look at the pictures in Tommy's case.) Meanwhile, Charlotte could feel the itch to sew returning. She considered herself an extremely forgiving person, but it would take a long time for her to find it in her to forgive the nurse who had taken her needle and thread. Sewing was the only thing she had left from the time before when she still had parents who loved her, and even after they were gone her grandmother had continued to teach her the art. It was soothing, something that helped chase away the sadness on even the worst days. What she wouldn't give to have it back. A gentle nudge to her side brought her out of her head. Dolly tapped one pin-finger against her hands; currently clamped together, nails digging into the soft, fleshy bit of her left hand between her forefinger and thumb. It was a bad habit she had picked up in the absence of her sewing supplies.
"Thanks," Charlotte whispered to Dolly.
After realizing the habit had formed, she asked Dolly to keep an eye out for it. Better to nip this thing in the bud now. She started rubbing her fingers with her thumb, letting that sensation overtake her instead of the pain. It wasn't a good habit, but it was a better one.
Anthony cleared his throat, putting an end to the other conversations. Somehow along the way, he had become one of the default leaders of their group.
"Do we have anywhere we want to try and go?" He asked.
"Pardon?" Pete responded. Edward snickered at the word choice, giving Twistee a look.
"Does anyone want to try and go anywhere, or are we just wandering for now? I figured I'd ask in case anyone wants to try and go back home. Or at least, someplace familiar."
"You're not." Hollow interjected before anyone else. "I'm not letting you go back there, I'll bend reality again if I have to." When met with confused stares from the rest of the group she stuck her tongue out at them. "Not telling."
"Well, I don't have anywhere I want to go." Annabelle shrugged. "My family is all dead."
"So is mine," Charlotte whispered. It wasn't the full truth, her parents had mentioned siblings before, and her grandmother had dozens of pictures and keepsakes from various family members scattered around the house, but none of them had wanted her.
"Mine may as well be," Niccolo said. "I'd be surprised if they even notice that the 'treatment' bill stops coming."
Pete nodded but stayed silent. He was the newest out of all of them, the pain of abandonment still a fresh wound.
"I'm keeping Tommy as far away from those people as possible," Edward growled, pulling his brother into a protective side hug.
The room's gravity focused on Momo, the only one yet to respond. She was beginning to shake, tears slowly welling up.
"I want to go home, I want to see my family, but-" Her voice cracked. "But they couldn't keep me. They- we didn't have the money-"
Charlotte didn't let Momo finish her thought, rushing over to the younger girl and wrapping her into a tight hug. She felt Annabelle do the same, Pixie and Dolly following shortly behind. They had heard the story before, the night Momo had been admitted.
She had arrived screaming and crying, begging to go back home. The duo hadn't been able to get a straight answer until late that night. Her parents had been too poor to support all of her siblings, they could barely afford food, so they surrendered Momo to the state so she would be fed with the promise that they would come back and get her as soon as they had the money.
"I don't know how to find them." Momo cried again, filling the cave with her sobs. "And even if I did, I can't make them take care of me again. They didn't come get me so they don't have the money yet. I can't do that to them."
"Breath," Annabelle whispered.
They spent the next dozen minutes calming the youngest girl down. When they finally broke out of the group hug, shockingly Pete was the one who spoke first.
"I know that we haven't known each other that long, but..." He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "It looks like we're going to be sticking together for a while, so maybe we can be your second family. If you'd like." Pete's face flushed and he looked back at the wall. "Sorry, is that too forward?"
Momo responded by tackling him in a hug. Charlotte couldn't help laughing at the side, bewilderment mixing in with the cozy joy she was slowly becoming accustomed to.
"Pete's right." She said. "I think we'd make a pretty good family."
"Better than anyone that I've ever had." Annabelle joked, leaning back against Pooky.
"Can we just do that?" Niccolo asked. "Just... decide that we're a family?"
Polo shrugged. "I don't see why not. It's not like there are rules for these types of things."
Slowly, Charlotte's smile spread across the entire cave. The idea of having a family again was intoxicating. Yet, Charlotte knew that officially putting a label on their motley group wasn't what made them a family. They had been one long before that moment, the proof shone in whispered stories, comforting hugs, and blanket forts made in the dead of night. Well, that was true for the girls at least. Quiet solidarity had formed between the two groups through notes slipped under doors and the occasional small conversation when the nurses let their guard down long enough. Even so, in the time they had spent together since Hathmoore was condemned, Charlotte could tell they were good people.
Notes:
I didn't plan for them all to have the "family" chat this early but it just kind of happened
Also I downloaded a pdf of an old Boy Scouts Handbook for this. Never let it be said that I don't strive for (unnecessary) historical accuracy.
Chapter 8
Notes:
So! I'll expand upon this more in the end notes, but this is the final chapter. This is NOT, however, the end of this AU/story. I've got a lot more in store, so stay tune ;)
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Their mission the next morning was clear: get as far away from Green Valley as possible and find someplace to live. As a family. The idea still sent shivers down Pete's spine, even though he had been the one to suggest it. For so long it had just been him and his mom, tucked away in the too-large house, dancing around each other as much as possible. Marco helped, as well as his books, but the house always felt too empty. Too hollow. Pete had hoped his father finally coming back from the war would change that. (It didn't. Neither his father nor his mother could deal with the constant night terrors, the flinching at every sound, the terror that had followed him home. He was committed to an asylum only a few weeks before Pete was.) Yet, Pete had spent so long admiring his friends and neighbors with their families that he had a good grasp on the concept. Looking around at the other kids, still making their way through the woods, he could see the same love and devotion planted in their hearts.
Pete let himself shake those thoughts away. There were far more pressing matters at hand. Being a family wouldn't mean much if they were torn away from one another. They needed someplace to stay, permanently. Camping outside was fun the first few nights, but they quickly grew weary of the elements. Not to mention they were running low on food, and exhaustion slowly seeped into their bones. Twistee had taken to giving piggyback rides to both Tommy and Smudge the entire day, Polo carrying Niccolo much the same whenever his injuries acted up.
Marco helped to lead the group, using the sun as a guide to keep them on course. Pete, in turn, kept track of how many days they had been walking and tried to roughly calculate how far they had walked. Running the numbers soothed him, especially when it grew incresingly harder to forage for food. The Handbook was the only thing keeping them going, pointing out different wild vegetables from their poisonous look-alikes. Charlotte had been right, they needed something more.
It all came to a head the night that Dolly, fed up with everyone dancing around the idea of hunting, left their camp and came back with two small animals, already dead and skinned. The meat was delicious, but it scared Tommy and Momo too much. The next morning, they woke up to Pixie and Twistee both missing. Pooky quickly put their fear to rest, having been the self-appointed "night watch".
"They both ran off in the middle of the night, saying something about returning soon with food. I imagine they'll be back soon."
Sure enough, an hour or so later, they returned carrying a loaf of bread and a bottle of milk. They had to have been stolen, but Pete couldn't find it in him to care much. He was hungry and tired, damnit.
Each night after, they would return in the morning with some variety of food. Usually bread and milk, but there was occasionally some fresh fruit in the mix. (If Marco steered them ever so closer to a road system, Pete said nothing. Whatever kept them all fed.)
Niccolo and Anthony tried to join in one night, but after returning with a bruised cheek and little to show for it, the other kids were banned from even trying to follow.
Some dozen or so nights into the routine, Pixie and Twistee returned with the usual groceries, along with a large pile of colored fabrics.
"What's that?" Momo asked, immediately forgoing the food.
Pixie wasted no time explaining. "We found you all clothes! We had to guess the sizes, but they should all fit well enough."
Twistee started laying out the clothes, sorting them into piles while Pixie excitedly talked about who she thought would fit them best. There were several different sweaters in an array of colors, along with pants. There was also a brown skirt ("That'll look just darling with the red sweater, Annabelle!") and a pair of overalls ("Since I know you'd appreciate the flexibility, Charlotte."). Then, after almost everyone was situated, Pixie pulled out one last bundle of fabric from under her skirt. It was a pink dress with a large white collar and a bow to tie in the back.
"And this one is for you, Momo!" The girl in question stood shock-still for a moment before screaming and running to grab the dress. She laughed and pulled Pixie behind some trees to change.
Pete ended up with an orange sweater, a shade that reminded him of Marco, but also of distant, soft memories he was slowly losing grasp of. (A blanket, hand-knit and tucked tightly around him with warm words. A bone-crushing hug as the sun set, right before a smiling face was lost to the horizon.) Marco placed a hook on his shoulder, grounding him. Then, they prepared to set out again.
It's a week and a half later, by Pete's count, when they finally find it.
The sun is just barely brushing the horizon when they stumble into a slightly overgrown clearing, a house sitting just a few hundred feet away. It was overgrown with vines, enough so that they felt comfortable enough to approach. And sure enough, it was empty. Pete ran a hand along the wooden table just behind the front door, unsurprised at the thick layer of grime and dust that came off.
Edward, to his credit, wasted no time finding the stairs and rushing up to find the master bedroom. Most everyone raced up top, but Pete took his time downstairs, accompanied by Niccolo. The house was almost entirely wooden and looked old. They found old pots and pans in the kitchen and linens in the cupboards that were still mostly usable. They just needed a good cleaning. There was another room downstairs, this one empty save for a rug. There wasn't any running water, but the bathroom was thankfully clean, and there was a river nearby. Other random essentials had been left behind in various cabinets and cupboards, and soon enough they had half a household's worth of stuff.
As Pete helped Niccolo up the stairs, making their way to tell the others they could stay for a while, he realized that he wouldn't mind that.
Notes:
As stated above, this marks the end of this fic! So sorry that it took so long, but writers block is a bitch and I, no joke, rewrote this chapter no less than five times. I'm not happy with it, or the lack of dialogue/interactions, but It was either post it like this or it would rot in my drafts forever. And I'll take being able to come back and fix this over letting it rot.
I have a problem where I'll start a long fic with a strong idea for the beginning and a ton of smaller ideas to connect along the way, but not real plan on how to do that, which leads to the fic ending up in purgatory. Coercion Cancellation was one of those fics. I still have SO. MANY. IDEAS. Not just for this au, but for IFA as a whole, but having to make them fit into one long fic just wasn't working. So we're restructuring this a little. CC will basically serve as the introduction/set up/prolouge for the AU. The real meat and bones are going to be shared through a lot of different oneshots and shorter fics that I'll be putting in a series to keep track of. This also let's me have a lot more creative control since I can explore some ideas that might contradict each other, or that I'd like to explore but I'm not married to making "canon" to this au. (Especially when it comes to certain family members who may still be floating around the world, or thing that have to do with the kids all grown up)
So, yeah! Expect more to come, and go ahead and subscribe to the series instead of this fic if you're interested in updates :D I'm already halfway done with a fic about Niccolo getting a job, so be on the look out for that soon ;)
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