Closer - TICCIMASK

Prologue

The sun was just setting in the sky, and all of the teens in the Overworld were either getting their homework finished and getting ready for bed, or forgetting about their homework and getting ready to go out and do some damage to local parks. Most of them had their night completely planned out, but none of them could've expected the fire. They'd hear different versions of the story later on, but only certain people would know exactly what happened and the story of the "maniac" who set the road and the forest on fire would be passed from person to person and town to town until people would have to find the news report online just to see where it originated from.

~~~

They all remembered the night that Slender Man walked into the mansion, as silent as ever, with a small boy in the crook of his arm. He had walked in, as quiet as ever, just holding the boy to his chest. No one really got a good look at him, but they could see that his clothes were torn and even burned in some places, and his eyes never closed. He stared straight ahead as he was carried upstairs. They all sat and stood in silence until Jeff began to speak.

"What the hell is that kid's problem?"

Jane backhanded him in the middle of his face and Jeff let out a short shriek of pain. "My nose!"

"Shut the fuck up, Jeffery. You don't know what that kid's been through."

Jeff scoffed. "Oh, look who's being Little-Miss-Empathy all of a sudden. I haven't seen you stick up for someone since I fucking came to this place! Now some kid pops up and you-"

"Children, please." Everyone looked over to see Masky and Hoodie standing at the foot of the stairs. "Slender Man is trying to get the boy to talk and he can't make any progress when your shouts are echoing up to the fourth floor."

"Fuck off," Jeff snarled. "No one asked you. And we aren't children."

"To me, you are." Masky turned on his heel and began walking back upstairs, Hoodie following close behind.

They all watched the two men go and waited until they disappeared to begin whispering.

"Do you think he's staying here?"

"Who the hell's going to train this one?"

"Slender will have your asses if he catches you gossiping again."

"Shut up, Masky... WAIT."

Jeff began screeching as he was pulled out of the huddle and dragged upstairs by the collar of his shirt, of which Masky had an iron grip on. Everyone snickered and went back to quietly gossiping.

~~~

Masky grunted as he threw Jeff into the laundry room. "You have laundry duty today instead of Clockwork, have fun!" He quickly shut the door, which could only be opened from the outside for certain reasons, and walked down the hall towards Slender's office.
He sighed and softly knocked on the door to Slender's office. "Sir?"

"Come in." The voice echoed in his head.

Pushing the door open, Masky walked into the large office and didn't expect what he saw; The small boy, who had been quietly sitting in a chair in front of Slender's desk the last time Masky was in there, was now huddled in a corner, screaming bloody murder while Slender loomed over him. Masky saw that he had thrown the chair into the wall, leaving a dent in the white wall.

"Sir? What happened?" Masky asked as he walked towards the two figures.

"He heard the static and began screaming before he grabbed his chair and threw it at me. I believe he meant to hit my head," Slender replied. "Would you mind helping me with him?"