Chapter Text
Yet again, shame had struck the Dreemurr household. It was on one of those evenings where the air felt tenser than usual and Togore already knew something was off. He was often framed as absent minded and yet, he was perceptive. He could tell when he wasn’t welcome. And he had never really been.
As he stared at himself one last time in the mirror, he wondered if he had taken the right decision. The blonde curls of fur on the floor formed a small pile he needed to clean up, but they were something he had been needing to get off his head. After all, if he could avoid being associated with the man who looked at him with thinly veiled disgust, he would. He had tried to get Asgore to even do so much as look at him, but the florist only ever felt warmly about two of his children. The ones he accepted to consider. Hence, Togore had taken his decision, and shaved off the blonde hair he inherited from his father. Maybe this would be a controversial decision, but his very existence could be considered controversial.
Togore gently slipped out of the quickly put-together corner in his parents’ room, which served as his own bedroom, and walked down the corridor without a noise. He sneaked to the bathroom to wash his hands, and stared at his own face yet again. His vertical pupils stared right back, seemingly empty, yet carrying so much. The freshly shaven top of his head was in a much more direct contact with the air, but it didn’t feel like a bad sensation. Somebody had left the bathroom window open, and the night air gently brushed on his face. Just what he needed in order to face them.
As he opened the bathroom door, Togore braced himself for everyone’s reaction. He knew his father wasn’t currently home, as he spent more time at the flower shop lately. Togore had tried visiting him but that didn’t go well. However, his mother and siblings, who were vividly talking in the kitchen, all suddenly turned to stare at him. Asriel let out a small shocked gasp, Tutoriel dropped the spoon she was holding as her eyes widened, and Kris… Kris did nothing, they were just sitting there silently, as usual.
"I- Did you shave your head?" Asriel asked, seemingly not believing his own eyes.
"Togore tastic." Togore answered, as a means to make himself understood.
"What have you done?" his mother shrieked, horrified. "Do you not see yourself? Did you really need to do that?"
Togore sensed that his mother’s and brother’s horrified faces were only getting more judgmental by the second. It was in their eyes, in the way their supposedly harmonious facial features contorted into a disgusted confusion. He started fidgeting with his hands under the yellow but greenish sleeves of his sweater.
"I just… I don’t understand. I’m too tired for this." Tutoriel sighed sharply.
Togore couldn’t help but feel the tears welling up in his eyes and slowly stepped back out of sight as he heard a faint static noise from the TV which was supposedly on as background noise. He clenched his fists and hid in the bathroom once more. He knew this would not go well. He attempted to dry his tears with his long hanging ears but did not fully succeed. That being said, crying only accentuated his naturally glassy exhausted eyes and his constantly seemingly vacant facial expression. He knew deep down. He knew that they didn’t love him. He knew that they didn’t even like him. Not his father, not his mother, not his brother, not his ever-so-silent sibling. Not even the neighbors. He remembered those gatherings at the Holiday mansion, when the adults would discuss complicated and uninteresting topics for hours on end, and let Dess, Asriel, Kris and Noelle to play together, often by the piano. Meanwhile, they often had a way of leaving unsubtle comments about how they wanted him out of their sight. "Why don’t you go play in the basement?", they would ask, seemingly innocently. From then on, it was him alone. Him and Chester, that is…
Chester. That was it. Togore stared at the wide open bathroom window, and he knew. They didn’t want him here, so why would he stay? What if this time, he actually did leave? Who would miss him? He knew the answer to that.
Togore lifted his freshly shaven head in order to feel the soft wind on his face yet again. There was only one person who would understand. There always was. He knew with his whole being that this was the right decision. He climbed on the edge of the open window carefully, and leaped to the other side, falling in the grass in a strange pose, but with a soft noise. He quickly got up, assessed his surroundings and took a deep breath of the night air. That felt real, and he loved it. Togore quickly started walking the path he had taken numerous times to the Holiday mansion. He knew this town like the back of his hand and was striding down the street with great excitement. It had been a little while, after all.
Togore found himself standing by the great gate of the mansion, and he could smell a familiar smoke in the air near the property. He crawled under the bush that he and Chester had agreed could be considered a "secret passage" and quickly reached the corner of the garden that couldn’t be seen directly from the mansion’s window. There it was. A tall figure with antlers, smoking in a corner.
"Chester. Hello." Togore whispered, walking right up to him.
"Woah, holy fuck dude… Is that you, Togore?" Chester blinked slowly, confused but excited.
"Yes. I have arrived." Togore stood, as Chester turned to face him. "You changed your hair, I see."
"Uh yeah, I was sick of the blonde. Have you seen my mom? Ugh, I can’t tell what’s the worst between her looks and her personality. I think dad just has horrible taste." Chester laughed, although it was clear his heart wasn’t in it. "So yeah, dyed it black. I uh, hope you like it."
"Yesssss. It’s Togore tastic." Togore gave Chester a thumbs up in the dark and a soul staring gaze.
Chester let out a more genuine giggle and really tried to discern Togore’s shape in the dark. With the help of the mansion’s light peering from the upstairs windows, he was able to see him. Mostly.
"Did you like, shave your head or something ? You look… Balder?"
He took another puff of whatever he was smoking and stretched.
"It suits you, I mean. You look sick. Not ill though." he specified.
There was a small silence during which Chester’s eyesight started better adapting to seeing Togore. The short goat was standing right in front of him, seemingly the same, but a few details were off. Freshly shaven head aside, Togore’s eyes were slightly puffier than usual and his eyebags more marked.
"Hey um… Have you been crying?" Chester asked, a tint of concern in his slightly bloodshot eyes.
Both of them sat down behind a small bush haze and Chester took yet another look at Togore’s face.
"They’re still assholes to you, aren’t they? I’m starting to believe they’re all unsaveable. You don’t deserve that shit, man. Especially not for existing." he declared.
Togore kept staring at the air in complete silence.
"You know what’s funny?" Chester continued. "I saw it coming. At first they just wanted us to play in the basement. Then, the family pictures I was in mysteriously vanished from the shelves. Then, there was always an excuse to keep me out. But in my loneliness, I know you saw it too. I know you lived it too."
He sat back and took yet another drag of his substance. He clenched his fist in the grass and tears slightly welled up in his eyes.
"It’s not fucking fair. Hell, what did we even do? What did you ever do? You’re like, unproblematic as fuck! The fuck is wrong with all of them? They don’t like the way you look? Well I..."
Chester interrupted himself to take another look at Togore. The young goat’s eyes were glassy, almost irrupting with an indescribable emotion. Meanwhile, tears were flowing out of Chester’s eyes on their own. He shut them tight and wiped them with his closed fist, before staring at Togore’s face yet again.
"Well… I love the way you look." he concluded, his voice shaking, but truly genuine.
Togore slowly reached out for Chester and held his hand as naturally as a hand could be held. He sat closer to him as well, and just stayed there in silence until Chester’s breathing went back to a regular rythm. Chester closed his eyes to enjoy the moment, still smoking. He then took a deep breath of the air itself and turned to Togore once more with a gentle smile.
"It’s going to be alright. You’ll see. The world will be better for us." He concluded in a whisper.
Togore and Chester spent the whole night sat next to eachother, on the cold ground of the Holiday garden. It’s not like anyone would ever look for either for them, let alone miss them. Both of them knew that they were too hard to love, yet one of them remained hopeful, somehow. Togore’s usually wide eyes were clenched shut, similarly to his grip on Chester’s left arm, which he was holding in a tight embrace. Chester himself slowly opened his eyes, awakened by the cold morning dew and the peculiar overly fresh smell of morning grass. He looked down to his side and couldn’t resist cracking a soft smile to the sight of Togore’s small form gripping on his arm like a lifeline. The top of his head was surprisingly clean shaven, despite the fact Togore had probably never touched a razor in his life prior to this. One would expect at least a single accidental bald spot due to Togore’s eagerness to shave his fur off and his unfamiliarity with the device, but it seemed like he had been very careful. So careful even that the top of his head appeared nearly flat. Chester had to stop himself from gently petting the top of his head in curiosity, as it looked so soft it brought a warm feeling inside the young deer’s chest. He could feel his heart melt a little more to each of Togore’s silent breaths, as they moved his small chest up and down. It took all of his courage for Chester not to wrap himself around Togore and melt into a hug right there and then, but he succeeded to stay still not to perturb the young goat’s sleep. He deserved that much. Chester simply couldn’t comprehend why the world was so cruel to such a gentle soul. Togore had never harmed anyone on purpose, nor did he ever intend to. He was way too kind for that. He took every single side remark in silence, seemingly brushed off every mocking look, accepted rejection head low in a tragic oxymoron, without a word yet again. He let them hurt him, over and over, without ever facing a single consequence. And yet, every single time, Togore forgave them. He came back, helped his father, gave his mother Toriel – whose name he had an adorable tendency to mispronounce – a hug and spent a bit of time with his siblings until the next drama struck. He had been constantly shoved away and hidden in corners but seemed to hold no grudge. Chester, however, simply could not wrap his head around it. None of this was fair, and Togore was being punished for the very crime of existing. Despite Chester being a victim of similar treatment, he felt significantly worse about it being inflicted on Togore. Perhaps was it because Chester’s sisters still looked him in the eye when they noticed him, because Rudy had kept – although in a relatively hidden drawer – the various gifts that his son had made him throughout childhood, or perhaps because Togore’s family was objectively worse, but Chester was enraged at the way his long lasting childhood best friend was treated daily. He wished he could have felt otherwise. Maybe it would be less self centered of him to feel sad or shocked at somebody else’s abuse, but he simply couldn’t help the wrath boiling in his guts. When he thought about what Togore had to go through repeatedly, all that was left was anger. They were all the same. The only thing they cared about was appearance, looking normal, good and typical. But that’s not a category Chester – or especially Togore – could fit into. These two had to be squeezed out of existence. Something could probably be done. Something had to be done. That couldn’t be it. This world was going to erase them otherwise. And that was a thought Chester couldn’t stand.
"Good morning. Chester."
The deer looked down to his left only to find a pair of widely opened glassy eyes staring at him in a trusting manner. Togore was awake.
"I uh… Did you sleep well?" Chester asked, taken aback. "I mean, this isn’t the best place to fall asleep, haha. I have one of those crazy headaches that mean I’ll probably pass out this afternoon."
Togore just kept staring at Chester’s face. With the hair dye, his antlers now appeared to be lighter colored, not contrasting with his hair as much as they did before. It looked more natural. Closer to who Chester truly was as a person. His smile also felt less forced this way, much more genuine. Togore let go of Chester’s arm to observe him properly. He looked a little devastated. To have needed to spend his night in the garden. And yet, somehow, he seemed happy to be here. Togore noticed that he was staring back at him with a soft smile and a glimmer in his eyes. Everything was going to be alright. Maybe, as long as they had eachother, the world wouldn’t get to them. They could travel anywhere, then maybe would they experience brighter horizons. This was truly a comforting idea for Togore, as Chester was the person he truly wanted to hold on to. Somebody who understood him, was ready to listen to him, connect with him, and prove this world still had good to it. Chester was always here.
Togore fully turned to the tall deer sitting next to him and gave him a thumbs up as a form of approval. Chester giggled and gently cupped Togore’s face with his right hand, gazing right back into the goat’s vertical pupils, which had a tendency to occasionally stray away from one another.
"Are you hungry? We can like, go to the diner nearby." Chester suggested. "Don’t worry about the money, I just wanna get out of here."
He then gently rubbed Togore’s right floppy ear with his thumb and added :
"Hehe, you’re soft."
Togore had to admit he enjoyed such signs of affection and had started to blush a little bit. However, Chester had not noticed as he was already standing up and offering his hand in order to help Togore get up.
Togore gently took Chester’s hand and stood up to the best of his ability. He too would need to admit that sleeping hidden in a garden was a little sad. But he knew he wasn’t alone in this. Even if he tried making himself believe that his family might be worried, he knew that the young deer currently leading the way was much more likely to care about him. He had proved to care about Togore at a much higher rate than anyone else ever had. Chester made sure that the world was a safe place, he was an anchor to this world that made Togore believe in the kind nature of people. Chester’s actions simply went against every other treatment that the poor goat had ever known. Chester was warm, he was welcoming. Truly, he cared.
As Chester himself was striding down the street, leading the way but still holding onto Togore’s hand, he couldn’t help but giggle. There he was, offering help to the being he cared the most about on this miserable planet. He felt a sense of pride swell up in his chest and a thrilling warmth spread from the thought reminding him that he was still gently holding the goat’s hand. Even now, he could already help by offering his company. Soon enough, he would find a way to change the world in order to ensure both of them a brighter future.
Chester walked into the diner first, scanning the environment with his eyes. Surely, this was somewhat of a safe space. He walked right up to the counter, rested his elbow on it and took a clear and loud voice.
"The usual, please. You know how it is." he claimed with what he hoped to be a confident smile.
The lady behind the counter did not seem pleased. In fact, she looked rather annoyed and not in a mood for pleasantries.
"And you are?" she asked monotonously with an eyebrow raised.
Chester suddenly seemed as offended as if he had been shot fifty-seven times. Togore, who had stayed back, observant as always, wondered if this interaction was going according to plan.
"I… I’m a deer!?" reminded Chester, although his tone sounded like a desperate plea.
"So?" answered the lady without missing a beat. "What about it?"
"It’s me… Chester Holiday?" he specified, sounding as if he was trying to convince himself more than her. "You know… Carol Holiday’s son?" he ended on a faint voice crack.
"The mayor ? Doesn’t ring a bell. I know about her daughters and you clearly aren’t either of them." she added, glancing at him briefly.
This about obliterated anything that resembled a train of thought within Chester’s mind. Such humiliation was not going to be easily forgotten. If this lady did not even recognize him, there wasn’t the slightest chance that she would let them get away with eating for free. And what was so special and unique about his sisters? Sure, Dess was effortlessly cool and laid back to the point he regarded her as a role model for the longest time, and sure Noelle was nearly an academical prodigy but Chester couldn’t be that forgettable, could he? He knew that the last family outings had gone on without him, but this was straight up a cruel twist of fate.
Chester glared at anyone present at the diner before suddenly turning back to Togore, his fist clenched.
"We’ll… Find another solution. I promise." he whispered before walking out.
Togore blinked slowly after witnessing the whole scene quietly. This was a lot to take in. He had laid eyes on every single person in the building, but each and everyone of these individuals immediately looked away from him, seemingly embarrassed. Was the social interaction Chester was having this difficult to watch or was it something else? Was the young goat’s face this repulsive to everyone around him? He knew he was deformed. He lacked what people call facial harmony. He had compared himself to his family for years, although mostly to his brother Asriel. Togore’s eyes were too big, his ears too small. He knew he was hard to look at. In fact, he had known that for years. But deep down, he had been holding on to that desperate hope that someday, something would change. That one day, people would look back at him in the eyes with sincerity. It’s not like he didn’t try to spark it. Actually, whenever he met someone, he held this hope, and made sure to scan every face that he encountered with his eyes. To no avail. Every single time, it’s like his face was impossible to look at. And maybe it was foolish to hope for it, but now that Chester was here, things had felt wildly different. Chester’s eyes didn’t flee, they were sincere. So Togore had hoped. That maybe now, the curse would be lifted. But it hadn’t been. Of course it hadn’t been. Maybe Chester was some sort of miracle, some guardian angel sent to ease the pain a little bit. Maybe Chester was just wrong, and saw something that wasn’t there. Maybe even worse. Maybe he didn’t see what was right there.
Chester closed the diner’s door behind them as they both reached the outside. His fist was clenched in desperation, yet he turned to Togore with a smile.
"Well that sucked. I love making a fool of myself, really. Not the most ridiculous situation I’ve been in though, I’ll tell ya." he announced somewhat sarcastically.
Noticing that Togore was now vacantly staring at the floor though, all of Chester’s previous composure melted in an instant. His face quickly turned to worry and he slightly bent down to Togore’s level.
"Hey… Is everything alright? Did anyone say anything to you? What’s going on?" he asked hurriedly.
Togore simply averted his gaze, seemingly not knowing what to answer. He had started fidgeting with the sleeves of his sweater once more and his weight constantly shifted from one of his legs to the other.
"Togore ? You can talk to me, I promise I’m right here. Please, I want to know what’s wrong." Chester insisted, with growing concern.
Togore stayed silent for a few more long seconds, before muttering under his breath.
"Features deformed. They all know." he whispered quietly, as his voice would break, had he attempted to speak any louder.
Chester’s face expression went from concern to pure shock. It also took him a solid second to collect himself.
"W-What? Did people make you feel like-? Who-?" Chester started, unable to follow a single train of thought. "What did they do to you?"
"They refuse to look. My face is wrong." Togore answered in a breath.
He simply could not comprehend why he had grown this way. His ears too short, his eyes so big. He didn’t understand why his horns came in so late, nor why they were uneven, as if the growth of one of them had been stunted. He himself had not gained much height and felt more ashamed each day to know what people saw of him. That was it. All he was. Togore Dreemurr. No wonder he was so hard to look at. He himself spent long hours staring at himself in the mirror, plunged in deep conflicting thought. He never really knew what to think. Maybe he was a joke. Maybe.
As for Chester, he was examining Togore’s features with a saddened facial espression. His eyes darted from the young goat’s soft ears to his wide eyes, gleaming with wonder and curiosity. Surely, this was a misunderstanding. Togore looked like nothing short of a blessing, with an incredibly soft fur and a face that could easily be cupped into the palms of two loving hands. Chester felt his own tender smile appear as he took a long look at Togore. His eyes lingered on those adorable horns of his. No one else but him could have grown those. They gave him this unique yet charming vibe and made it so that he was impossible to mistake for anyone else. And maybe it was Togore’s innate and inner kindness that made all of his features seem so harmonious to the young deer, but he simply couldn’t see things otherwise.
"I like the way your features are formed. I think your face is right. I really don’t want it to change." Chester confirmed with the most tender of expressions, staring deep into Togore’s eyes, his own welling up with tears.
"O" was all Togore could respond, his eyes widening even more from surprise.
"You wanna know what I think about your face?" Chester asked, pulling Togore into a tender embrace, his own heart racing from such a bold move.
Togore himself stared at the ground in shock, feeling his face heat up. The young deer was holding him like he was the most precious thing in the universe, dearly but carefully.
"I think it’s Togore tastic." Chester whispered, leaning in close to Togore’s left ear.
He immediately regretted this, as he slightly pulled away from Togore, although still while holding him gently. He felt his heart pounding nearly out of his chest and for the first time, struggled to look at Togore in the eye. At least until he noticed the way the young goat was similarly affected. Togore’s gaze was fixated on the ground nearby, but not out of boredom or lack of comfort. In fact, Chester’s heart nearly exploded from noticing the slight smile drawing itself on Togore’s lips. Not only was Togore’s smile an extremely rare occurrence, but it just had to be adorable. Chester let out a small giggle and returned a full genuine smile to Togore. He averted his gaze for a second again, somewhat flustered before staring at the short goat once more. The atmosphere had been greatly softened, as both of them seemed to feel at ease, for once. Togore slipped and interlocked his hand with Chester’s, staring at the ground once more. Chester held his breath as he let Togore gently lead the way, strolling through town.
Eventually, both of them knew they needed to find a way to feed themselves. Funnily enough, their footsteps led them directly to the Dreemurr household. Togore stared at his own house for a minute, with great emotion that he struggled to process. His glassy eyes reflected a life of doubts clashing with his gentle soul. Chester noticed the change in his expression and turned to him.
"Will you be okay?" the deer inquired, worried. "We don’t have to hang out at your place if you don’t feel like it. The world is ours."
He gave Togore a soft smile and a gentle squeeze on his hand, attempting to reassure him. Togore felt the warmth of the gesture, both literally and figuratively. He looked up at Chester and was able to emmit a few words.
"I can handle." he muttered softly.
Togore pushed the front door and entered, followed by Chester. They silently walked through the living room, only to find Asriel hurriedly close the fridge, turning back to them in a flash. He was eating something too, but was clearly attempting to swallow it as fast as possible.
"Uh… Howdy? How are uh… You guys doing?" Asriel blurted out, trying to distract them from something, his gaze meeting everything but the newcomers.
"Sup." answered Chester with a vague wave.
"Hello Asriel Dreemurr." responded Togore, staring at his older brother with a blank expression he often used.
"Mom’s away, Kris too. Obviously dad as well, as you can see… So like, it’s just me." Asriel added, not knowing what words to fill the silence with.
"Uh… Thanks." Chester answered, somewhat puzzled.
Both him and Togore walked to the corridor as Asriel’s gaze followed them worriedly. Once out of his sight, they stood for a few seconds, processing what had just occured.
"Dude, what’s up with your brother? And what’s so weird about whatever he was eating that he didn’t want us to see?" Chester wondered aloud, although he was curious for an answer.
"He is odd." replied Togore in a blink.
Asriel had strange inexplicable habits from time to time, so Togore learnt not to mind nor question them. So did everyone else, to be fair. He could not have explained Kris’s occasional behavior either.
"Follow." he instructed, with a determined look on his face.
Chester gladly did, and both entered a room that appeared to belong to the Dreemurr parents. Chester knew it, but he didn’t come here often. Both of them quickly walked over to the "Togore corner", which served as a room for him. Mostly, it was a mattress on the floor surrounded by quite the amount of pillows and a few piles of books, with a small round mirror and a few electronics on the side. Togore had once stated that privacy wasn’t much of an issue since his parents weren’t that much around to occupy the room, especially during the day. If he really needed to be alone, the bathroom was usually free anyway.
Togore sat down on the mattress, as he had done a thousand times. Staring up at Chester, he tapped the mattress next to him twice, as a manner of instructing Chester to sit right there, which he did. Togore then turned around, searching the pillows behind him. Eventually, he dug through until he pulled out a small plate with a slice of quiche on it. He turned to the tall deer sitting awkwardly, holding the plate up like a trophy.
"We share." he affirmed.
"Of course." Chester nodded. "How long have you hidden this here? Not that I’m complaining."
Togore shrugged. Chester chuckled, then started to eat alongside the goat. The room temperature quiche smelled pretty good and tasted alright, and both of them were hungry, so the plate was finished in maximum three minutes.
Having eaten made Chester somewhat drowsy, and he lied on his back, his left hand resting on his stomach.
"Dude, Togore, thank you so much. You’re the best." he stated in a yawn.
Togore lied down right next to him and his hand reached out for Chester’s hair. It felt thicker now, and the fact it was darker did objectively suit the deer better.
"Your hair I like." Togore announced. "Black is your color."
Chester chuckled a little once more, definitely flattered. Togore did not just compliment anyone, so he knew that he fully meant it. He closed his eyes with a smile and let his own breath slow down and become more regular.
As for Togore, he reajusted his position, laying his head on the deer’s chest, carefully listening to his heartbeat as if it was some kind of lullaby. It was no melody, but it sure was soothing to him. He wrapped his arms around Chester as well, holding on to him for comfort, which both of them thoroughly appreciated. Togore finally closed his eyes as well, letting his most unfiltered sensations dictate the flow of his mind.
The first thing he remembered was the delicate yet strong smell of Tutoriel’s legendary cinnamon-butterscotch pie. It was mostly Kris’s favorite food, but Togore remembered that him and Asriel used to run to the kitchen as children every morning the warm smell hung in the air. He remembered his mother’s warm smiles and the gentle headpats she gave all of them. He remembered Asgore’s genuine laugh to Tutoriel’s puns and his somewhat desperate attempts to replicate them. He remembered his father’s hugs too. Warm, tender, safe. Before things got awkward and tense around the house. Togore had missed that feeling. He remembered Asriel’s frustrations, when he had claimed that Kris was allowed bigger slices of pie than him. He remembered his younger sibling sticking their tongue out at his older brother after that, too. He remembered hanging out with his siblings and with the Holidays. He remembered Dess’s wink, when she did something none of the adults would approve of. He remembered Asriel consistently yet quietly picking the worst controller when playing video games with either him or Kris. He remembered Noelle’s kind smile whenever somebody talked to her about something. He remembered sitting in silence with Kris, neither of them feeling pressured to communicate verbally. He remembered the first time the adults told him to go play in the basement on one fateful day, during a gathering at the Holiday mansion. He had slowly walked down there, only to find a young crying Chester, who had – unconvincingly – pretended he hadn’t been crying when he noticed him standing there. Both of them had sat there for a while, not really understanding why they were down there. By the time they had to separate, their bond had greatly strengthened, and they had waved goodbye, Chester smiling widely and genuinely. He remembered.
With a soft smile, Togore gently gripped Chester’s shirt. He remembered.
As for Chester, he found his mindscape in a much different state. He suddenly saw himself in the middle of a deserted road, walking through town, except every single building and every single street was empty. Had been emptied. The sky was a strange shade as well, a brownish tint that felt like a vaguely diluted red. The air was heavy and the smells unfamiliar, going as far as to make him nauseous when he breathed in too much. Each of his steps felt heavier than it should, as if he was knee deep into a thick liquid, although he wasn’t. He felt his anxiety grow tenser at every noise, turning around quickly, only to find he was still alone. He tried walking faster, but the landscape remained the same. Although the air was weirdly warm, the light felt diluted and he wouldn’t stop shivering. Everything looked dusty. He quickly walked to find the gate to the Holiday mansion rusty, but seemingly untouched. The big house itself, however, felt incredibly sinister and Chester dared not enter. He slowly took a step back, then another. He did not want to know what could be inside. He suddenly noticed a brief movement of a shadow by the upstairs window and ran out of the property. His mind, however, was racing even faster. There was somebody he had to check up on.
He arrived in front of the Dreemurr property, shaking, sweating, panting. But he needed to know. He took a few painful steps toward the front door and slowly pushed it open. The house was a mess, and yet it looked like it had been this way forever. Nothing was in its rightful place, mostly randomly placed on the floor instead, everything either dusty or rusting. He tried to avoid stepping on anything and slowly made his way to the corridor. Once there, he had to force himself to go forward. All of the signals were telling him to freeze, and yet. Something else made him keep walking. There. Finally. The final door. Yet again, he forced himself to turn the handle and step inside the dark room. He walked forward until he was close enough to see it. The trembling shape in the corner, just almost below the window. But this time, Chester’s eyes forcefully closed before he could process anything. He was holding his breath, almost against his will. Shaking.
"I knew this wouldn’t end well. It’s too late, here." interrupted a falsely joyous voice behind him.
Chester spun around in an instant, his eyes wide open. In front of him, stood a human child with brown hair wearing a green and yellow sweater, hands hidden in their back. Kris? No. This child was too young, their cheeks too reddish, the smile plastered on their face too unnatural. Chester held his breath once more, stepping back as slowly as possible.
"You, however, still have a shot." the child continued.
They revealed their hands, one of them holding a black knife tightly. They slowly walked up to Chester, himself frozen in fear and disbelief and took one of his hands in theirs.
"You should know what to do." they added, that unnerving smile still present, as they placed the knife in his palm. "I can guide you, after all. Then maybe, it won’t be too late."
Chester’s heart was nearly beating out of his chest by this point, as he was frozen in terror but fueled by adrenaline.
"All you have to do is keep listening to me." the child concluded. "Do you really want things to unfold this way?"
No. He didn’t.