Oogie Boogie's Prisoner (Jack x Oogie Boogie Fanfic)

Chapter Three

Jack sits on the edge of the bed. It is dark and without windows. Jack's eyes, adjusted to the night, can see fairly but not enough; every corner of the room seeps into a cavity that only descends into a deeper, darker abyss to swallow him whole. He can feel the chill breath of the cave all around him, as though he were in the stomach of a great beast and he can feel each of its intricate movements as it digests him. Jack stays fixated upon the door. Any jiggling of the handle, or any cracking upon the hinge; if there were any stray dusts that happened to land, Jack watched and listened but there was nothing through the night that disturbed him. He did not intend to sleep, not by the racing of his heart and terrible thoughts in his mind could he ever allow himself to rest, but he found himself to have been awakened at an hour he did not know. But it must have been morning, then, as he awoke to the door cracked open and himself covered by a scratchy, loosely woven blanket about to unravel from its fibers into a pile of miserable string. It disgusted Jack. He threw the blanket and went to the door.

The cave is empty. There was a smell unlike the other odors which offended Jack's sinus- it was sweet and it was familiar, and he found himself to venture towards it by the will of his own hunger pangs. The kitchen was empty, but it was used. Freshly picked fruit sat in a cracked bowl, Jack wondered where it could have come. A plate of breakfast was on the table. Jack looked around and still he was alone. He wondered then if it were meant for him to find, and if he should eat it. He stared at the decorated plate. It was neat, unlike the kitchen and the whole of the other manners of Oogie boogie- by all means, it would have been thought of any ordinary meal presented with care if Jack had not known who was responsible for its making. He took a fork and made a small slice into the waffle. He examined it and saw nothing but the cooked batter fixed into the shape of a spiderweb. It's fine. Should it be put through a series of tubes and vials, conducting experiments and tests until any abnormality could be found, there would be none to be seen in any capacity; it was a waffle. Jack took a small bite. It tasted like a waffle. Jack looks around and he is still alone, wondering then where Oogie Boogie might be; perhaps he is in a corner waiting for him to let his guard down. Jack takes a deep breath. The taste of the waffle still on his tongue; his stomach hungers and he wishes to be defiant, but he takes another bite. He ate only half until his mind could think clearly again and it came to him immediately what he is to do next: Dr. Finklestein.

Jack runs to him. The door and the beetle-shaped lock. He touched it with his long, bony fingers and examined it. Oogie Boogie, just yesterday, had opened it without a key, and Jack wondered what mechanism could keep something secure if it lacked security. He played with it longer, until the Beetle started to jitter, it buzzed and scuttled but refused to unlock its claws from the latch. Jack pulled at its claws this time, trying to force it to open though it would not budge. The beetle started to hiss and Jack let go.

"Please," Jack said quietly, "my friend is in there."

The beetle buzzed and grumbled, it opened one eye and gave a mean look, then closed it again and resumed its stoic posture upon the latch. Jack poked at it and watched it squirm.

"What can I do to get you to help me?" He whispered. The bug settled back into its post. Jack poked at it again, trying to do as he watched Oogie Boogie do, and he wasn't sure entirely of what he did or if the bug at last came through to help Jack, but there was a click and the beetle unlatched its claws to scratch at the spot where it was tickled.

"Thank you,"Jack said to the beetle, finally able to open the door.

"Dr. Finklestein," he said quietly, looking in and fearing for what he should see. Dr. Finklestein was inside, it was only him, he was busy at his desk. "I'm here to help you, my friend."

Jack steps in and the doctor looks up. He has an indifferent expression, not quite misery and not quite a joy to see his friend; he looked determined and focused, as if Jack's presence was an intrusion.

"What are you doing here, Jack?" he asked.

"I'm here you save you, Dr. Finkelstein."

"A lot of good that did you."

"What do you mean?"

"You're the one that needs saving, now. Ugh..." Dr. Finklestein grumbled, setting down his tools and rubbing at his cranium as he always has done. "You can't escape on impulse, Jack. With what key? With what plan? And where would we go, and what would we do? I have devised my own plan, and in time you must have patience and trust in me."

"Is that so..." Was the reply. Jack felt foolish. He truly hadn't had any plan- he never even told anyone that he left Halloweentown. Jack slapped his own skull.

"It is not all waste... Do not be sad, boy. It will all happen in time. You can still be of use to me, yet."

Jack perked back up, "What is this plan? What can I do to help?"

Dr. Finklestein looked around the room and tried to look behind the door. Jack, unnerved, followed Dr. Finklestein's eyes and looked behind but it was just an empty gambler's chamber with unlit lights.
"I cannot tell you, now. But this is what you can do for me... A drink of water would be pleasant."

"Of course," was the reply. Jack left, leaving the door ajar as he did so. He went to the kitchen and gathered the water, and some of the fruit within the bowl. It was still quiet, and Jack realized just how lonely he truly was in this time. There were no bugs stirring on the walls, nor the floor or ceiling; it was without the smallest, most vile creatures and it lacked most of all the villain who commanded them. Jack's eyes dart around the room, expecting any moment or any turn of his back and he will see Oogie Boogie there, standing over him. Jack left the kitchen, closing the door sensibly behind him, and it was then at last that Oogie Boogie appeared to him. Jack was frightened but did not allow himself to show it; he was expecting, it was inevitable, and now it has happened and he must face this fear.

"What have you got there, boy?" he asked.

"For Dr. Finklestein." was the reply, unafraid.

"Then go ahead and give it to him."

"I will."

Jack walked past. Oogie Boogie was holding something behind his back but Jack did not dare to look. It was something terrible; the shape of it could not be distinguished from a glance. Jack continued walking and his steps were watched carefully by Oogie Boogie. He was afraid to step into the room. Jack, situated in the doorway between the lock, looked behind and Oogie Boogie was unmoving, hands behind his back and with a look that seemed to suggest impatience. Jack stepped in quickly, staring at the doorway for fear that at any time it could shut with a loud metal din and lock them both inside. He set down the food and drink, making attempt to leave as quickly as he came, but Dr. Finklestein grabbed at Jack's arm and he was caught in surprise.

"Do you trust me, Jack? Come by tonight if you can. Go, now." the doctor said. Jack listened but unsure if he heard it correctly. He nodded, and Dr. Finklestein let him go. Jack made fast for the door. When he at last made it out, he was breathless and shaking. Oogie Boogie pulled Jack out of the room by the hand and quietly shut the large metal door, leaving Dr. Finklestein again to his own lonesome.

"You're honest, I like that about you." Oogie Boogie said. "Now let me show you somethin' nice I picked up." Oogie revealed his hand, and at last Jack could see what he had kept hidden. It was a bouquet arranged with dead roses and held together in a dried snakeskin.

"What do you mean by this?"

Oogie Boogie pressed the bouquet against Jack's chest, prompting him to hold it but Jack's arms remained at his side unsure of what to do.

"Ain't I allowed to be nice to you, boy?"

Jack looked down at the flowers.

"I don't understand."

"I like you, Jack. I want you to be happy."Jack thought about those words and what they meant, and how they are inapplicable to the unique situation. Happy..? It would make me happy if you let us go, Jack thought to say, but dared not to let it escape his lips. How dare he, Jack thought. How dare this conniving, scheming villain think Jack to be so naive as to believe he is to be anything but manipulative."I don't like what you're up to." Jack said, pushing away the bouquet with more force than he had intended to; he was angry and did not yet realize it. His hands curl into a fist but remain at his side, and he stares down Oogie Boogie with a mean look he did not know he was capable of."Now don't give me that, boy." Oogie Boogie said calmly, though he was larger than Jack and stood over him. Jack does not back down despite the upset. Oogie Boogie grabs Jack by his skull, pinching at his jaw with his hand, and holds Jack so close to his face that they can feel each other's breath. Jack, so thin and so light, was weightless in Oogie Boogie's grasp. It hurt. Oogie Boogie's fabrics wrinkled into a scowl."You belong to me." he said. Oogie Boogie loosened his grip and Jack fell as he did so; collapsing and his bones rattling as they hit the stone floor. Oogie Boogie crouches down low to face Jack, and he slides the fallen bouquet to the frail skeleton. He tucks a dried, withered rose into Jack's lapel. Jack stares in horror."I belong to you," Jack repeated those words, the meaning of them suddenly became synonymous with himself; he is his, the game was played and the rules were understood. There were no cheats or tricks."That's a good boy," Oogie Boogie petted Jack's skull, the roughness of his fabrics scratching at the bone.Jack looks up to see Oogie Boogie's wickedly smile, stretched wide and full of bugs."What now," Jack asked."You can just sit there pretty for all I care." was the reply.Jack slowly blinked. Oogie Boogie took Jack's hand, Jack did not flinch at the touch, and a very gentle kiss was placed upon it. Oogie once again departed from the lair, Jack was sure that he was left to his own lonesome, but he did not move from where he lay, and the thought of Dr. Finklestein and the plan of escape did not cross his mind.