A Vast Sea

•● Chapter 5 ●•

The boy opened the old wooden door to his parent's room, making a quiet creaking noise.

He tip-toed over to the bed and silently climbed up to where his dads were sleeping.

It was a small bed against the wall, so his parents always slept close together. Bonnie was asleep on his back, resting his head on Freddy's upper arm. The bear was facing him and had one arm loosely draped over his waist.

The boy shifted, causing Bonnie to stir and open his eyes.

Bonnie was a very light sleeper. He always woke up earlier than everyone else, and he was startled by the smallest noises. Freddy, on the other hand, could sleep through a hurricane. It was nearly impossible to wake him up in the morning.

Bonnie sat up, already fully alert. When he caught sight of the boy in distress, he gave him a look of concern.

"Are you alright, Greg?" He whispered.

The boy spoke but was quickly hushed by Bonnie.

"Whisper, honey. Your dad is sleeping." He gestured towards Freddy, who was still out cold.

"I-I'm scared of the dark..." The toddler whispered, wiping his eyes.

Bonnie gave him a sympathetic look. "Don't be, honey. The dark isn't scary at all!"

The boy still looked unsure, so Bonnie carefully slid Freddy's arm off of his torso. He leaned down to kiss his husband's head before scooting off of the bed.

Once he stood up, he lifted the boy in his arms and left for the door.

"W-where are we going...?" Gregory asked nervously. Bonnie smiled.

"I want to show you something."

He headed towards their backdoor and unlocked it. When he was out, he picked up the lit lantern hanging by the door and closed it behind him before walking off with the boy.

Bonnie took him to the shore, which was only a few feet from their home. Gregory relaxed at the familiar calming sound of the waves crashing into the beach.

"Look up." Bonnie whispered.

The boy did as he was told and turned his attention to the sky. Bonnie quickly blew out the lantern so the boy could see better.

The sky suddenly lit up as countless stars came into view.

They all looked so different, but they were so beautifully scattered across the sky. The boy stared in awe at the sight. He reached his paw up in a grabbing motion towards them.

"I can almost touch them!" He exclaimed. Bonnie giggled and bounced him in his arms.

"They're beautiful, aren't they?"

Gregory nodded quickly and leaned his head into Bonnie's neck tiredly.

"But you can't see the stars during the day... you can only see them at night." He started.

"You'll never see the beauty in anything if it's always sunny... Everything shines brighter in the dark..."

Bonnie moved the lantern to his left paw that was holding Gregory on his side and used his free paw to pet his ears affectionately. The boy leaned into the touch and relaxed even further, cuddling closer to his dad.

"...We need the cold, dark nights to see the light in everything... the dark is not scary." He stated. Gregory thought of his words and settled down. The warmth and safety he felt in Bonnie's arms and the sound of the waves was enough to tire the boy out. He drifted to soundful sleep.

When he woke up again, he heard his parents quietly talking. He poked his head from the blanket to see them.

Freddy was still lazily under the covers and talked slowly while Bonnie was propped up on his elbows, wide awake.

Freddy glanced down in surprise when he saw the boy.

"And when did you get here, Greg?" He laughed.

"He came in here last night." Bonnie lifted a paw to fix Freddy's messy head fur.

"But I'm not scared of the dark anymore! Daddy made me not scared!" Gregory exclaimed excitedly.

Freddy chuckled and lifted an arm to lazily ruffle his bangs. "That's my brave boy!"

Freddy leaned over and kissed Bonnie's forehead affectionately, making the boy cringe.

"Yuck! Not while I'm here." Gregory complained.

Freddy pulled away and smiled. "You came into our room, Gregory!"

The boy crossed his arms. "It's still yucky!" He huffed.

He was caught off guard as Freddy pulled him in suddenly, peppering his face with kisses.

"Is this too 'yucky' for you?!" He joked. The boy retaliated and struggled under his hold but could not contain his own smile. He turned to Bonnie desperately.

"Daddy, help me!"

Bonnie smiled and shook his head. "You're not getting out of this one, honey." He leaned in to kiss the boy's cheek.

...

Gregory was woken up suddenly by someone violently shaking him.

When he saw it was Cassie, he scowled in frustration. "What??"

"Something weird is going on!!" She cried.

This caught the boy's attention. He groaned and hopped out of the hammock to follow her towards the deck.

Sure enough, there was an oddity.

There was a thick fog around the crew. Not only that, but it was an unnatural purple hue. The others were looking on in equal shock.

Gregory jogged over to his dad and hugged his leg nervously.

"What's happening...?"

Freddy placed a protective paw over his head. "I don't know..."

Roxanne also gestured for Cassie to stay close.

Admist the silence, a blade launched forward from the fog and onto the top of the mast. There was a rope attached to it.

When Foxy saw this, his eyes narrowed in alarm and unsheatged his sword.

"It's an attack!" He snarled.

The others quickly armed themselves as well. Unfortunately, they couldn't get the kids into the cabin on time before they heard someone slide down the rope and cling onto the mast.

The figure was quick as they used a blade to drag them self down the mast slower.

It was a tall bunny. Her face was obscured by a large, mysterious black feathered hat and cloak. She wore an unnerving and unmoving grin on her face.

Foxy approached cautiously. "Ye've made a foolish decision coming here alone..." He growled. The bunny's smile only grew as she spun her blade around indifferently.

"But I'm not alone."

Unbelievably, through the fog, figures started to appear.

None of them could believe it at first glance. They were souls!

Several souls of deceased pirates crept into view.

"Where is it?" She asked.

"What do ye' mean?! We don't got nothin' for ye'!" Foxy scowled.

The bunny shook her head and pointed her blade towards his throat.

"You have it. Where are you keeping it?!" She questioned more aggressively.

"He said we got nothin'! We don't know what yer' talkin' about!" Monty snapped.

The bunny chuckled and shook her head.

"Then we'll have to take it from you." Her sinister grin grew.