Just Another Creepypasya Fanfiction

7. Meeting Zalgo

        "Are you sure you don't mind babysitting for me?" I ask while pulling my hoodie on over my head.
Ben scoffs at me. "Dude, I've been babysitting for you already. Every time you leave to patrol, I babysit."
"Yes, but this time it'll be for more than twenty minutes. I don't know how long exactly, but definitely an hour or so."
"It'll be fine. The kid and I are, like, best friends now. I can handle it. If anything happens or I have a question, I'll call you, but I doubt that'll happen." I give him a skeptical look. He rolls his eyes and continues, "You're just being dramatic, bro. I've already been babysitting her every day and I haven't minded. And I'm not going to mind now. It's all good."
I sigh. "You're right. God, what's wrong with me? I'm suddenly worried about everything, including things I know I don't need to worry about."
He gets off the couch and pats me on the back. "You're okay, man. It's just the mommy urges in you finally coming out." I slap the back of his head. "Ow! You know what I mean!"
He sits back down as I start to explain my instructions for watching Alisper. Even though it's the middle of the day, I still tell him what to do when it's time for her to go to bed. He listens dully as I run him through every detail as though I won't be coming back today. When I finally finish my speech, I go to Alisper's room to tell her that I'm going out for a while. I let her know that Ben will be watching her while I'm away, then tell her to have him call me if there are any issues.
"Can I have a little touch of luck?" I ask while stretching out my hand. She high-fives me.
'A little touch of luck' is something I've been doing with Alisper the past couple of days. She hasn't tried to hug me as she does with Ben, which is fine, but it has made me worried that maybe I haven't been making her feel as welcome as I've been trying to. I figured that high-fives would be a good way to express that she's welcome here without seeming forceful. So far, it seems to be making her happy.
I tell Ben to keep the door locked as I walk out of the house. He promises and tells me to stop worrying. Before I can respond, he closes the door in my face. I laugh and flip my middle finger up at him through the window.
I walk through the forest cautiously. I don't sense anything unusual, but I still pay a lot of attention. As far as I know, the proxies are unaware of our location. As far as I know, they aren't even close to finding it. But it's never good to assume that you're right. Clockwork and Ben don't know if they've learnt anything about us, so anything is still possible. Thinking about it makes me nervous and I change my walking pattern in an attempt to make it seem less human. Soon enough, I'm at the edge of the woods next to the 'trail' that Clockwork told me to meet her at. She's not here yet, so I sit on a nearby rock and wait.
The sound of feet suddenly running at me makes me jump up. I pull my knife out of my pocket and spin around. I grab the culprit by their shirt, then throw them into a tree. It doesn't impair them for too long as they get up almost immediately and rush at me again. I manage to block a blow aimed at my head, but soon get punched right in my gut. They kick me backwards, then jump on me while pulling out a knife of their own. I'm quick to take mine. With all of the force I have, I send the blade into their side. It stuns them just enough that I can fit my foot underneath their chest. They go flying off of me and I jump back up to my feet. I'm ready to charge again, but can't see them anymore. They're gone.
I walk around the area close by in search of my attacker, but there is no sign of them. They just vanished. I return to my rock and sit back down. I keep my knife out and ready, refusing to relax or brush it off. Whoever that was, I don't know. I know for damn sure it wasn't Clockwork because she doesn't have the ability to disappear in thin air like that, but I can't think of any other person it could be. Or, I can't think of anyone who it could be who looks like a person.
It was clearly an attack. But was it planned, or random? Was the assailant a proxy, or just a wild Creepypasta? If it was a proxy, or anyone who happens to be sided with Slender, there could be a lot more trouble. I wonder if they followed me here? And if so, from where?
Chills run down my spine as I pull my phone from my pants. I dial Ben's number and hold my breath as I listen to it ring. When he picks up, I interrupt before he can even finish saying 'hello' and ask him if they're okay. He's very clearly confused but quickly confirms that everything is alright. The information calms my nerves slightly. I tell him about the attack along with my concerns. He promises me that they're okay. Before hanging up, I ask him to invite Liu over. He doesn't argue with the suggestion.
"Hey, sorry I'm late."
I swing around swiftly with my knife tightly in my head. When I see that it's Clockwork, I put my weapon into my pocket. "Hey," I say to her. "Is everything okay?"
She looks at me with something similar to worry before answering me, "Yeah, I just got caught up talking with Sally. She asked if I know where you are. She apparently wants to have a playdate with Alisper. I explained to her that it isn't allowed as gently as I could. She was disappointed, but she seemed to understand."
"Poor kid."
She agrees with me and we start walking among the trees together. "So, what about you? Are you okay?"
"For the most part," I answer. "I've been stressed out and anxious with trying to get my life on this new track and keeping things secure."
"Have there been any issues?"
"Besides being attacked three minutes ago? No, not that I can tell."
She pauses for a brief second and looks at me shocked. "Attacked? What do you mean 'attacked'? By who?"
"I have no idea. I didn't recognise them."
"What happened?"
I tell her the whole story. She asks me if I can describe them. I either do really poorly or she doesn't know who they are either. She asks me if I have any injuries, then asks me if I think that Ben can handle it. The conversation quickly turns from one about safety to the difference between the way one acts when they're safe and how one acts when they aren't. Despite his age, Ben is mature and responsible enough that I fully trust him to keep Alisper, himself, and our house in good condition. With Liu going over to help, which I'm sure he will once he's asked, it's almost guaranteed that they'll be okay. Anything is still possible, but I have few concerns about their abilities.
Our long walk comes to an end outside Zalgo's palace. One of his guards immediately stops us and demands to know why we're intruding here. Clockwork explains that we have a meeting set up while showing him the confirmation message she received about it. He calls another guard over and directs her to lead us inside. We follow close behind her into the throne room. There's already someone talking to him, so we're directed to stand by the wall to wait for our turn.
I've never been to the palace before. It's kind of nice. His throne chair, which sets on its own platform, is designed to make it look like it has wings attached to the back. In front of the platform is a semi-circle of fire; probably to stop people from getting too close. It only stops at the stairs, where guards are placed. The coolest thing here, in my opinion, is the large baskets full of skulls. It's definitely creepy, but it really gets the point across that he's in control.
Screaming echoes throughout the room. I look over and see the guest before us bursting into flames. The fire has him completely engulfed. Zalgo is speaking, but the screaming combined with his seven mouths running at the same time makes it hard to make out the words. The fire doesn't go out until the body melts into a goo. We watch horrified as the goo seeps through the cracks in the floor. It is just us now.
"CoMe," Zalgo commands us. We walk forward to where a person once stood. "StAtE yOuR bUsInEsS."
"I have set up an appointment with you," Clockwork begins. "Jeff, my friend here, has moved into a house just outside of the protective barrier. We were hoping you could extend it for him."
"WhY wOuLd I dO tHaT?"
"He is willing and capable of paying the same as everyone else, granting you more riches and more power."
"YoU," He says to me. "sPeAk."
Clockwork takes half of a step back so the attention is on me alone. I swallow all of my concerns, forcing myself to be as confident as I usually am. "It's an honour to meet you," I start. "I've heard so many things. Um, I'm Jeff. I used to live with Slender at his mansion. I was kicked out a few days ago after deciding to adopt a child, a mere human. We couldn't find any available homes within the barrier; otherwise, we would have stayed in our territory. I was hoping that you'd be willing to extend the field for us that way I can keep my immortality and heightened abilities without having to force myself into another's home. I don't want to risk starting a war."
"DiD yOu SaY yOu AdOpTeD a HuMaN?"
"Yes, sir. Her name is Alisper and she's seven-years-old."
"WhY?"
"I wanted to save her," I answer. I consider leaving it at that, but I decide to be completely honest. "I haven't been feeling as evil as I used to. I've been wanting a normal life, but I also want to keep everything this realm has given me. It made sense to me to kill this girl's parents, who had been abusing her, and raise her myself. With that decision came the decision to leave Slender's place and be an actual adult. It seemed like the easiest way to get normal without having to change everything in my life."
Zalgo stares at me quietly and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to find something else to say or not. I make the choice to match his silence, hoping that it doesn't make things turn sour. Due to his changing shape and demonic nature, there's no way to read him. I can't tell if he's on board or not. I start to feel like I'm fucking up when he finally says something again.
"WhErE iS tHiS hOuSe?"
"It's a large cabin, south of Slender's mansion. It's almost a straight shot east from here."
"WhAt Do YoU dO fOr WoRk?"
I scratch my head, feeling a little nervous again. "As of now, nothing. I'm trying to get a job, but currently, I'm unemployed. We found a few grand in the house though."
He takes another pause. This one is much shorter than his last. "I wIlL dO iT. eXpEcT a ViSiT fRoM mE sOoN sO i CaN tElL yOu HoW mUcH iT wIlL cOsT. iN tHe MeAnTiMe, It WiLl Be FrEe, As LoNg As YoU dOn'T mEnTiOn It To AnYoNe. If PaYmEnT iS mIsSeD oR wOrD gEtS oUt, YoU wIlL fAcE a FaTe WoRsE tHaN dEaTh. Am I uNdErStOoD?"
The nervousness is replaced with relief as I quickly confirm that his words fell on open ears. He says something about how it was nice to do business with me, then tells us to leave. The guard who brought us in directs us to follow her once again. We go through a few doors and find ourselves suddenly outside. The guard is gone by the time we turn around. We start treading through the woods.
"That was interesting," Clockwork says. I nod. "Was it your first time meeting Zalgo?" I nod again. "Mine too."
"He was... A lot less mean than I was expecting," I say.
"I agree. I've heard so many bad things about him that I was expecting him to be an asshole and tell you absolutely not."
We don't talk much during our walk after that. It's mostly small talk and listening to sticks snap under our feet. We're maybe halfway to my house when we notice that it's almost sunset. The meeting took longer than it felt like it did.
"You're welcome to stay for dinner, if you'd like," I offer. "I'm not sure what we're having yet, but I know Alisper wouldn't mind and there's no reason for Ben to."
I see her smile. "I'd love to. What are you guys having?"
"Shit, I don't know. Alisper and I usually flip through cookbooks until we find something that sounds good."
Clockwork gives me a few ideas, then we stop talking again. The quiet moments are already something I'm getting used to. It still feels strange and puts me on edge, but it doesn't feel as difficult to deal with. Walking through the woods, not speaking, watching animals scurry past us, is pretty nice. It's weirdly nostalgic, even.
"Did Ben tell you about Alisper's adoption papers?" I ask.
"No," Clockwork answers.
"I added you to it as one of the guardians."
I see her lips turn up like she's about to smile, but she doesn't. "How come?"
"I figured it would be good for the kid if there was a backup. You know, in case something happens to me or I can't be there for her, like if she needs to be picked up from school. Since you two like each other so much and I know you want to be a mom, I thought that it would make even more sense for it to be you."
She lets herself grin. "I love that. Thank you." I tell her that it's no problem. "Does this mean that we're co-parents?"
I chuckle. "Yeah, I guess so."
"Well, I guess that if I have to raise a child with any of the people I've met under Slender's roof, I would prefer for it to be you. You're the least... concerning."
"I can only imagine the number of people who would disagree with you," I respond with a laugh.
"When it comes to children, I mean. I fully believe that you wouldn't hurt a kid and definitely not to the same degree that some of our housemates would."
The thought makes me cringe as it dawns on me exactly what she means. I was a sadist before I started becoming normal again, but some of the Creepypastas are much more than that. It's grotesque to consider, and more so to consider what would happen if Alisper and I were allowed to live there.
My stomach twists and I take control of the situation. "Right, so, as co-parents, we should probably discuss our expectations for each other, Alisper, and ourselves." She agrees with my suggestion, so I continue, "I definitely don't want to raise her around anger. I figure that she's put up with more than her fair share of that. I want to try a gentler parenting method."
Clockwork smiles again. "I love that. It would definitely be the best thing for her, I think. She needs a calm, safe environment more than anything."
"We all do," I say.
"True."
We talk more about parenting the kid together and discuss the different ways of handling conflict. We manage to set a few boundaries for each other too, like 'don't see the kid if you just killed someone'. By the time we're done talking about it, I feel like I know what I'm doing. It's nice to feel like you have a partner, not just a helper. As our talks continue, it shifts into discussing the attack I experienced earlier. She offers to help me with my daily patrols. As much as I appreciate it, I can't bring myself to accept. It would be putting her life at risk too, and no one needs that kind of trauma right now.
We finally get back to the house. Liu, Ben, and Alisper are sitting on the floor surrounded by ancient-looking VHS tapes. It's confusing at first because the TV is off, but then I notice that they're building with them. Clockwork and I decide to join them. We sit cross-legged on the floor next to the group and help them stack the tapes. It's more fun than I would have expected it to be.
"How was the meeting?" Liu asks us.
"A success." I smile at him while I answer.
"Awesome! We should celebrate!" Ben cheers.
"Yes!" Alisper agrees excitedly.
Clockwork laughs. "How so?"
As if their brains suddenly molded together, Ben and Alisper answer at the same time by shouting out, "Cake!"