Screwing Up
“Arden’s Pendant?!”
“Are you absolutely sure, Blu?”
“Yes! I know what I Saw! That symbol’s ingrained into my brain, you know- I know what it looks like!”
“But Arden- that was disbanded around forty years ago, it can’t have been...”
Spring’s words trailed off as Blu just looked at them, his eyes reflecting the fear that Spring undoubtedly felt. “Spring,” he started, his voice soft, “I know what I Saw.” His voice was filled with conviction, and neither Spring nor Alfred could find words- because Blu’s Visions had never been wrong before.
With a breath, Alfred lifted a hand to his face and simply walked away. Arden, he thought miserably, walking into the shadows and reappearing in his private room. He pulled his cloak off and looked around, towards the thick red curtains on the window, the red and gold canopy bed in the center, towards the pictures he hung on his wall, to the boarded and locked door, to the candles lighting his room, to everything that had become his life after those long torturous weeks.
Arden. That one simple word weighed on him, memories forcing themselves into the forefront of his mind almost painfully.
Dropping the cloak on the floor, he walked over to his bed and dropped down onto the mattress, staring towards the windows. “Arden,” he repeated out loud, slowly, softly. It tasted vile on his tongue- like a curse so horrible that no one would dare utter it. Like something that mothers would swat their children’s hands for saying, the kind of word drunkards would hurl at each other in the midst of a bar fight.
Arden’s return is not okay.
Closing his eyes, he could see it clear as yesterday- the others, thankfully, only had vague memories of it... mostly that pendant dangling around its neck... but... sometimes... he could hear Mangle whining in her sleep, begging for it to stop... sometimes... he would catch Blu absently rubbing at his neck when he thought no one was watching him, and sometimes he would notice Chii gripping her wrists tightly, or find Spring gazing blankly at the scars on his arms... and Alfred knew they had some impression of the memory- of the hands, of the chains, of the teeth, of the pain...
None of them remembered the way Alfred did, though.
Alfred wanted to keep it that way.
If Arden returns, then my job just got a whole lot harder...
He couldn’t let them remember.
THE DURMONT PAGES
FEBRUARY 19, 1790
Seven days ago Albert and Constance Fischbach’s five children went missing. Since then investigators have found the remains of two teenagers but both were confirmed to be human remains and therefore unrelated.
Mr. & Mrs. Fischbach reported that their children, four of whom they adopted from the local Danver-Durmont Orphan House, left the family home to celebrate with friends their youngest son’s eighteenth birthday and their eldest daughter’s engagement around noon. They were last seen walking east down Lake Road.
In the days since their disappearance, neighbors have reported suspicious activity at the Arden Farm next to Durmont Lake. However when investigated nothing strange was found. The owner of the property was taken for questioning but released due to lack of evidence.
THE DURMONT PAGES
MARCH 4, 1790
Arden Farm goes up in flames!
Yesterday March 3, 1790, Arden Farm burned to the ground. A short investigation has authorities suspecting arson.
The owner of Arden Farm was nowhere to be seen, but an underground bunker previously hidden was uncovered by the flames. Inside was a disturbing sight, reports Michael Afton; he likened it to a torture chamber with chains on the walls and bloodied tools scattered around the tables.
Articles identified as belonging to the Fischbachs were found at the scene but no remains have yet been discovered.
Authorities have released a warrant for the arrest of William Afton, the owner of the Arden property, on suspicions of murder. If you have any information about the whereabouts of William Afton, please come forth.
THE DURMONT PAGES
SEPTEMBER 15, 1791
Unidentified remains have been found in Durmont Lake, numbering twelve in all. There has been no word on whether or not the missing Fischbachs are among them, but an anonymous source working closely to the case has confirmed that the remains are from multiple different Animals. All of them appear to be between the ages of eight and twenty-one, and the oldest skeleton is believed to date back to the late 17th century.
Are these William Afton’s victims? If predictions are correct it is unlikely. Does this mean Durmont Lake has over the last century been the dumping ground for murder victims? Perhaps even longer, suggests Detective Schmidt. The recent dry spell has lowered the lake substantially but it is believed that more remains may still lie under the water.
If you have any information...
Goldie glanced around their apartment warily, stepping through the living room to the bedroom doors. Cocking his head, he listened carefully.
Silence.
He let out a sigh and turned to the others. “I don’t hear anything,” he told them, watching as Chica pulled the curtains open. In the beam of light he could see dust flying through the air.
“Neither do I,” Freddy agreed, watching the beam of light hit the floor.
“Have the last few days just been a dream?” Chica mumbled, more to herself than to them. “Everything seems to be in place.”
Goldie felt a strange tugging in his chest. “No,” he immediately answered, shaking his head. “If it was a dream then only one of us would have had it.”
“I wish it was a dream,” Foxy groaned, collapsing on the couch and covering his eyes. “I want to go back to the world where vampires’re fairytales and demons are religious folks’ explanation for disease and mental illness!”
Something was nagging at Goldie. He could feel the fur on the back of his neck rise, felt a shiver down his spine, felt like... like... his skin was crawling, at best.
At worst, he felt like his skin was trying to peel away and leave his frozen bones exposed.
“Well tough shit, I do too but guess what, we can’t,” Bonnie groused, leaning against a wall. “I dunno what the hell’s going on but I don’t like it.”
“Close the curtains,” Goldie suddenly said, staring at the glass and the light beyond. From there he could see the alley he had run into Spring in.
“Goldie?” Freddy’s voice was filled with concern but Goldie didn’t take his eyes off of the window.
Someone’s watching us.
But he knew better- it wasn’t someone. It wasn’t another person, another set of mortal eyes on him making his skin crawl. It wasn’t anything he had ever really known before. It was new yet familiar- strangely familiar, frighteningly familiar, but I can’t remember from where.
No, it wasn’t some one watching them.
It was some thing.
Something familiar.
“Close the curtains,” he repeated, somewhat more urgently. Chica moved to do as he said, pulling the curtains shut and blocking out the sunlight again. Almost immediately the feeling faded and Goldie relaxed.
“I think we’ve majorly fucked up,” Foxy muttered, his voice just barely reaching Goldie’s ears.
“No,” Freddy sighed, sitting down in a chair and looking around at all of them. “I think we’re just more aware. That... thing last night could’ve killed us. If anything, I think we’re lucky.”
Goldie turned to Freddy, somewhat shocked. “Wait, you’re actually acceptin’ all of this is real?”
“Don’t get me wrong,” Freddy immediately started, eying his elder brother, “the moment there’s logical proof otherwise I will turn my back on this supernatural crap, but for now it’s the only explanation we have.”
“This is quite the turn of events,” Bonnie commented, yawning audibly from where he leaned against the wall. “I think, though, that we should all get some damn sleep- I couldn’t get any last night.”
“Yeah I’ll so be able to sleep in this apartment now,” Chica snorted. However, she turned towards the bedroom she was to share with Bonnie and headed inside.
Goldie was less enthusiastic.
“You guys go ahead,” he started, watching as Bonnie followed Chica into the room and Foxy rolled off of the couch and climbed back up to his feet. “I don’t think I can sleep right now.”
Freddy eyed him, frowning slightly. “You’re not gonna do anything stupid or crazy, right?”
“We’ll see,” Goldie simply shrugged. Freddy’s frown deepened.
“I’m not tired,” Freddy told Foxy as the fox headed into the other room. Goldie noticed the fox hesitate and step away from the door.
“I think I’ll sleep in the living room,” the fox muttered before returning to the couch. Goldie and Freddy shared a look but neither could really blame him.
“I’m gonna walk,” Goldie told his brother, leaving the invitation floating silently in the air.
Freddy, clearly, understood what Goldie was actually saying and nodded. “I’ll walk with you.”
Nodding, Goldie headed towards the door. Freddy was quick to follow.
The door clicked behind them.
“Do you really want to do this, Gold?” Freddy asked quietly, hurrying to fall into step next to him. “As much as I’m unsure ‘bout all this, I do think gettin’ involved is dangerous.”
Goldie glanced towards him. “I think not gettin’ involved is just as, if not more, dangerous,” he revealed. “I dunno if you felt it but I think somethin’ was watchin’ our window. Or... watchin’ us. I could practically feel it.” He turned his gaze to the stairs as he made his way down them, a hand on the rail. “I don’t remember but it felt kind’a... familiar.”
His brother made no move to respond, simply following him down the stairs.
“Do you remember the way to Lakeview?” Goldie suddenly asked, glancing back at the brown bear. “It’s on the... northeast side, right?”
“Across Eastway Bridge,” Freddy confirmed with a nod. “At least from this part of town.”
“Across the river, right.” Goldie sighed and headed towards the door. “I always hated that fuckin’ bridge, ya know. It’s really... isolated.”
The bears hesitated as they stepped into the bright light. “Maybe,” Freddy started, “we should just go the long way. Through the city. Eastway is faster but...”
He was nervous, Goldie realized; Freddy didn’t understand what was going on but he understood now that they were in danger. Maybe we’ve always been, but are moreso now.
The eyes were back. Goldie could feel them on his back, following them as they walked down the sidewalk. “Yea,” he agreed, not sure if he wanted to be on an isolated road if those eyes chose to follow them. “Yeah, through the city with lots of people.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Spring couldn’t sleep.
His sisters and Blu had all retired to their shared room and Alfred had yet to leave his personal room. Spring wouldn’t be surprised if none of them were sleeping.
Nervously he rubbed his arms and ran his tongue over his fangs. His body was aching with injuries that had long since healed, even if their marks had never gone away. He couldn’t remember for the life of him where they came from, but every time he heard about Arden- every time news of them cropped up- back when the Academy found their headquarters and shut them down, he ached.
It tingled in his flesh and vibrated in his bones, screaming for some sort of relief that he couldn’t get until his mind had been drawn away from Arden- from that pendanthe could see, dangling on a thick leather cloth as someone... someone whose face seemed to be completely gone... man, woman, he couldn’t tell... as they leaned over him, hands- clawed, scaly, fleshy, he couldn’t remember- reaching out to grab him... he laid out on the floor- table?- unable to lift his arms, his legs, his head- his body was on fire and his heart was racing, vision blurring but always focused on that pendant, that blood-red diamond- the twisting silver and gold forming hourglasses on either side...
It was only a flash in his memories- one of the few moments he could remember during that time. Shuddering, Spring rubbed his arms again and looked around the foyer. It was dark, shadows creeping around, but they didn’t bother Spring. They had long since become normal for him- just another part of his life.
There was a creak. His gaze snapped over to the covered windows, brow furrowing. Another creak and the sound of footsteps on the porch alerted him that someone was out there- no, more than one person.
He nearly stopped breathing, ears perked as he listened to the footsteps approach the front door. The front door was boarded up but Spring knew from past experience that that didn’t stop everyone.
The footsteps stopped and Spring could hear murmured voices. Carefully Spring approached the door, ear twitching upwards. It’s those kids. Or... not kids anymore. Two of them, he determined, frowning. How do they expect to get in through there? They’re not gonna break our door again, are they?
Clinging onto the distraction, Spring pressed his ear against the door.
“-rded up, Gold. There’s no way we can get through,” one of the voices was saying.
“We just have to get creative,” the other- Goldie, he realized- retorted. “Too bad the wood’s not as rotten as it was fourteen years ago.”
Heaving a sigh, Spring leaned against the door. “You know,” he called through the door, “breaking into our house isn’t a good idea.”
There was a beat of silence, then, “Spring? That’s your voice, right?”
“Yeah,” Spring confirmed, glancing towards the ceiling. “And no, I’m not opening the door for you. I’m not getting Dusted today.”
“Dusted?” the other voice- Freddy, if Spring had to guess- whispered to the bear on the other side. Spring decided not to elaborate.
“We need to talk you y’all,” Goldie told him, a frown in his voice.
“I know,” was all Spring said.
“Can you let us in somehow?”
Spring hesitated. “Can it not wait until after dark?”
“Not when we just walked through the damn city to get here.”
Frowning, Spring asked, “Why didn’t you just take Eastway Bridge?”
“Because we don’t have a death wish,” Goldie responded dryly. Spring snorted at the irony there.
“Could’ve fooled me,” he muttered, but then he began wondering just why Goldie and his brother were afraid to cross Eastway Bridge. From what he understood the bridge itself was well taken care of and in no danger of falling into the river below, despite it looking the same as when Spring was a child. Sighing, he said, “Go around the left side of the house, between the guest house and this one. You’ll find an outside cellar door there. It’s locked but it’s wood and we haven’t replaced it in a hundred years. Be careful.”
Without waiting for their response he pushed away from the door and walked towards the kitchen where the inside cellar door was. He walked up to the door and paused, frowning, before sliding the locks out of place and opening the door, staring down the stairs into the darkness.
The dark didn’t scare Spring. The thought of the spiders and rats that undoubtedly resided in that abandoned, unclean cellar didn’t scare him either. Still, though- he never liked going inside.
Breathing in, he crept down the stairs carefully, watching for the dim light filtering in through high muck-caked windows. After ascertaining that he could avoid the sunlight, he stepped off of the stairs onto the dusty concrete floors. He could feel movement in the cellar- small things skittering across the floor, creeping up the walls and across the ceiling, the things they never let upstairs if they could help it. The scent in the partially-underground cellar was stale at best, musky at worst, and it was unsurprisingly damp.
In the corner something slithered away. He shuddered; we should really take care of this place.
A few seconds passed before he heard a knock on the cellar door. Then another knock, this one louder, and Spring realized it wasn’t a knock at all.
Stepping back and away from the cellar door, standing somewhat behind old abandoned boxes- just in case- and he watched as the wood began to splinter. It didn’t splinter as much as it simply split, a century of neglect leaving it as rotted as the wood over the windows.
The area with the lock on it fell inwards and a pocket of sunlight hit the floor. Instinctively Spring ducked away from it, but when none of the light reached him he relaxed. The shrieking sound that reached his ears told him that the door was being pulled open, its hinges protesting the entire way. He winced, considering just how rusted those hinges were.
He was honestly surprised that any Mortal could pull them open.
“Ugh, it certainly smells bad enough,” he heard Goldie complain. “Is that a spider web?”
“I’ll grab a stick,” Freddy sighed, clearly exasperated with his brother, and Spring couldn’t help but smile slightly.
“Oh, gross, there’s a web! I’m not going in there!”
“Will you relax, Blu? There’s not even a spider in it, it’s a cobweb.”
“I don’t care, it’s still gross.”
“Alright, alright, I’ll go grab a stick, just relax.”
“Spring? You down there?” Goldie called and Spring peeked out from where he was hiding, eying the bear at the top of the steps in the square doorway. The sunlight was almost blinding and Spring felt a desire to look away; even the light reflecting into his eyes seemed to hurt.
“Yes,” he answered, watching Goldie turn in the direction of his voice. “I’m in the shadows,” he added, smirking slightly. “Don’t like webs, do you?”
“I don’t care about webs,” the bear scoffed. “It’s spiders I don’t like.”
“Spiders are the least of your worries,” Spring warned him as the brown bear returned, a long stick in hand. “I haven’t been down here since we first moved here. More than spiders live in here. There’s a snake in the corner so be careful.”
“A snake?!” Goldie yelped.
“Calm down,” Freddy commanded as he carefully stepped down first, using the stick to get rid of the cobwebs. “Don’t mess with it and it won’t mess with you.”
Once the way was clear, Goldie followed his brother down and pulled the cellar door shut again. “You guys should really keep your doors and stuff good, you know,” the golden bear said, turning to follow Freddy across the cellar to the stairway. Spring stepped out from behind the stack of boxes. “Someone’s gonna break it all and get in, y’know.”
“It’s already been done,” Spring noted dryly, watching Freddy set the stick down by the stairs. “Fourteen years ago. Remember?”
“Vaguely,” Freddy deadpanned, turning to look at Spring in the darkness.
“Children do lots of stupid things,” Spring mumbled, glancing towards Goldie. The bear frowned at him.
“We’re not children anymore,” he reminded.
“I wasn’t talking about now.”
With that, Spring turned and went back up the cellar stairs, stepping out into the kitchen and waiting for them to join him. Once the two bears were safely on the linoleum floor, Spring closed the cellar door and threw the locks back into place.
“Is that really necessary?” Freddy asked.
“It is for us,” Spring stated matter-of-factly, moving towards the dining room and the sitting room beyond. “The others are... trying to sleep, so keep your voices down. They’ll echo in here.”
He was unable to see the look shared between the brothers as he located a chair and sat down, pulling his legs up onto the seat with him. The bear brothers sat together on the couch, glancing around at the flickering candles.
“Still no electricity,” Goldie noted.
“We have no need for it,” was the only thing Spring could think of to say. “What did you need to talk to us about?”
The brothers frowned, sharing a look, before Goldie said, “Well, I wanna know if there’s a reason someone would be watching us.”
“Watching you?” Spring repeated, his mind immediately jumping to Blu’s vision. The fox standing outside a burning house, a dark figure wearing Arden’s Pendant standing nearby... He shoved the thought aside. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence. “What do you mean?”
“Well,” Goldie started, hesitant, “when we got home this mornin’ and the curtains were open I could’ve sworn I felt someone watchin’ us... and when we left, the eyes followed. And they didn’t leave until we came here.”
Spring stared at him blankly. The bear fidgeted nervously and Freddy glanced at the elder bear. After a few moments of silence, Spring said, “So something is watching you and you bring it here.”
It took a few moments for the bear to apparently realize what he did wrong.
“Your home was the location of a Demon attack,” Spring told them, voice soft, as he tightly folded his hands on his lap. “It could have either been the Demon’s master or the A... authorities keeping an eye on things,” he corrected himself. “No matter which one it is you’ve definitely put yourself in danger.”
“How?” Freddy asked carefully, but the gleam in his eyes told Spring he already knew. However, Spring knew he was waiting for an answer- verification or denial. Spring wished he could give the latter.
With a soft sigh, Spring leaned back in his seat and turned his gaze up towards the ceiling. If it's the Academy then their only chance at surviving now is a Blood Bind, he mused silently to himself, closing his eyes briefly. They are not going to like that any more than we are. Not even Marion's owed favours will get us out of it- that would be reported straight to Nightmare...
“Simply put,” he started, looking back towards them, “by coming here and speaking to me, you have confirmed that you know about us... and by extension, our world.” He hesitated for a moment before adding, "If it's the Demon's master then you're no longer safe in the mortal world; they will try and eliminate any mortal knowledge of our existence. That means they will kill you."
"And if it's not?" Goldie prompted, a nervous waver in his voice as he and Freddy shared a look.
Spring breathed out, ears lowering as he watched them, shaking his head slightly.
"Then you're even more likely to die."