The Hedgehunter: A TAWOG Fanfic

Chapter 4: After School Activities

Gumball, Darwin, and Carrie all found themselves trudging through the sidewalks and streets of Elmore in the driving rain, visibility at an all-time low given the weather and the setting of the sun. The sky was a deep gray, and only the occasional flash of lightning helped illuminate the way. Gumball had the foresight to wear an old, hooded coat to help shield himself from the elements, Darwin being a fish didn't particularly mind the water, and Carrie being a ghost wasn't affected at all. Were the three of them not being pursued by a maniac and her face not wounded, Carrie would've found the atmosphere appealing. The three of them kept their heads low and stuck to the sidewalks and back alleys to avoid detection. Ideally they'd never be outside in this weather in the first place, but given the circumstances, they had little choice. All of this, because of a movie.

Carrie kept the burlap sack close to her chest. Inside of it was just about everything they could potentially use against the Hedgehunter, and even then it only really consisted of her encyclopedia of arcane knowledge and the cursed film. If they had any hope of surviving the Hedgehunter, or even beating him, they needed to know what they were dealing with.

"So, Carrie..." Gumball spoke up through the rain. "If you don't mind me asking, what exactly IS the plan here?"

"Well, we need to get access to some kind of DVD player. The more private the better." Carrie would explain. "From there, we watch the Hedgehunter's disc again, and get as much information as we can, as quickly as we can."

"You sure there's much we even CAN get?" Gumball replied. "I mean, you were there too. I've seen modern art pieces more decipherable than whatever's going on in that movie."

"That's because it's not a movie." Carrie sighed. "It's real. All of it."

Gumball and Darwin both shuddered at the fact. "And dare I ask, how did you come to that realization?" Darwin spoke up.

"It was from an outside source."

"Who?"

Carrie gave them both an embarrassed glance. "...the Hobo."

Gumball and Darwin both stopped and looked at her perplexedly. "The Hobo? Seriously?"

"It was at the end of the school day. I skulked away and told him how I was feeling, and he gave me the rundown." Carrie explained.

"Respectfully, Carrie, do you SERIOUSLY trust him to be a reliable source of information on all this?" Gumball inquired.

"Well he's better than nothing!" Carrie barked back defensively. "At least he knew what I was talking about AND was willing to listen to me!"

"Alright, alright. Fine." Gumball ceded, and the group kept moving through the rain. "What exactly did he tell you?"

"Well he told me that the movie is actually recordings of the Hedgehunter's deeds, of course. But he also told me that the movie is cursed." Carrie explained to them both. "Watching the movie essentially marks you as a target for the Hedgehunter. Apparently he's able to see you through the film itself, and that nobody whose ever watched the movie has been seen since."

"Wait...you don't think he can see us NOW, do you?" Darwin squeaked out. "Like...holding the movie means he knows where we are?"

Carrie hadn't considered that as a possibility, and the thought of it made her tremble. "I...I don't think so. I think it's only if the movie is actually being played." She tried to keep everyone calm.