In The Dark

If only her friend's dog hadn't ran off into the woods, then she might have avoided her encounter. How ironic that the entity she was so tactlessly insulting moments earlier was now her stalker.

   The four women were driving back from their colorful week in Nevada. The women driving was an older Latina with her curly hair in a scrunchy. In the passengers' seat was a younger Latina, one of her nieces, with long brown hair and bangs swept to the side. The seat behind the driver was occupied by a Caucasian with short blonde hair and blue eyes. And the final seat sat the last of the Latina girls, the other niece of the driver, with her brown hair and straight bangs. The four of them listened to the radio as they drove down the street.

   The driver turned down an abandoned road, a 'short-cut' as she put it, and the others took no notice of the vast forests on either side. No streetlights were seen for miles, the only light was coming from the brights in front. The Caucasian sat nervously in her seat. The seventeen year old held her dog, a brown corgi named Arthur, on her lap. She petted him to try and calm her restless nerves.

   The backseat Latina looked out her window and smirked, "What if the Slenderman was out there?"

   "Don't freak me out, man!" the Caucasian whined, "You know how much I get scared of that crap!"

   The Latina in the front sighed, "Calm down. It's not like we are stopping."

   The backseat Latina's smirk grew as she continued, "He's so stupid. I mean, come on! I don't get why people are so scared of him. He looks like a Salesmen trying to sell me a used vacuum cleaner. How can anyone take him seriously in that ridiculous suit?"

   The Caucasian shook her head and said, "Don't say things like that. Karma will come to bite you back."

   "Karma can suck my left--" the Latina girl was cut off by her aunt in the driver's seat.

   "Don't use that kind of language." her aunt said, "You know, he comes after little children under the age of sixteen. You are fifteen. He'll surely come after you."

   The Latina girl in back blushed and stuttered, "N-no way! I'll kick his arse if he comes near me." She rolled down the window and let the cold summer air enter the small car.

   Suddenly, Arthur began barking uncontrollably. The Caucasian girl struggled to hold him down, but the dog jumped free of his bindings and made his way across the backseat. Before the Latina girl could think, the dog Kamikaze-jumped out of the window going 50 mph. How he survived? No one knows.

   The Caucasian girl screamed, forcing the driver to stop the car. The last they saw of the dog was him running straight into the forest before disappearing in the darkness.

   His owner sat in her seat, sobbing her eyes out. Her companion had just been lost, maybe forever.

   The Latina next to her felt very responsible for letting her best friend's dog jump out. She patted the girl's back and said, "I'll go look for him."

   "You sure?" the Caucasian looked bewildered, "You want to go alone?"

   "Sure. I'm not scared." she said, "Besides, it was my fault and mine alone. I'll bring him back in no time."

   Her aunt gave her the emergency flashlight. The Latina thanked her aunt and stepped out of the car. The locust made an unbearably loud noise, but as soon as the girl's sneakers crunched in the leaves below, it stopped. Dead silence was the only noise now.

   The girl turned the flashlight on and the powerful beam shined on the ground. The girl, hesitant, walked slowly into forest. There was no trail, so finding a way back would be impossible. She had no plan if she was to get lost. She just prayed that she would find the dog in time and get back before anything happened. And she knew something would happen.

   "Arthur?" the girl's voice was too low, but she was afraid to yell any louder, "Arthur. Come here, boy."

   Silence. The locust were watching in silence as well as another, but he was to be mentioned later.

   "Artie?" the girl continued her slow moving, her own footsteps making her heartbeat race. Every twig that was snapped, every leaf that was crunched underfoot, every moan in the darkness had the girl's sanity level descending.

   The trees were all thick and tall, the moonlight showing little through the canopy. A whisper on the left, her flashlight turned. Nothing was there and after a moment she continued on her path. The trees slowly and slowly became thinner and thinner. Until she had reached an area within the forest, an area of dead trees. They went on as far as she could see and that's when she heard it.

   Barking. Her heart lept in her throat as she spun around. There was no sign of the dog anywhere and his barking came to an end. She stepped into the area and kept her eyes peeled for the little brown corgi.

   "Keep barking, Arthur." she said softly, "That way I can find you and get out of this place."

   As if an answer from God, the barking continued. She heard it coming from beyond the area, or at least she thought. The sound reverberated throughout the entire forest it seemed. She went with her head, not her gut which was saying to turn around and run, and walked on.

   She was thankful that the barking was getting louder and louder. She was getting closer it seemed. Hearing little paws on the forest's floor, she increased her pace for the first time.

   The small dog came within sight and he was barking at an unusually thick tree with branches gnarled everywhere. The sight looked out of place in the dead tree area. Arthur began growling at the offending trunk. He backed away quickly and ran toward it, repeating this several times.

   The girl crept towards the dog, not wanting to startle him and make him run. Arthur's ear bent back, hearing her steps. He turned his head and saw her. He made a happy bark and ran up to her.

   "Artie!" she cried, "Thank goodness! I'm so glad I found you. Let's get out of here."

   A chill ran down her spine. She was being watched.

   Arthur, whom she had picked up and placed on her shoulder, let out a guttural growl at whatever was behind her. He squirmed out of her arms and sprinted towards whatever it was.

   "Damn." she turned to see the dog running further and further. She ran after him, not wanting to lose sight of him again.

   The trees thickened once more and soon she found herself in the part of the forest that matched the beginning. Maybe she was close to the car. If that were true, she'd just have to capture Arthur quick and book it to the car before whatever it was got them.

   Strangely, a trail emerged from the trees. She stopped however. The smell of copper and iron reached her nose and she slapped her hands over her mouth.

   Blood. Blood everywhere. It was slathered on the trees and it coated the path before her. Paw prints were seen in the blood. Meaning it had been fresh.

   All the signals in her head told her to run. Run and never look back. She contemplated on just telling her friend that her dog was dead. The Caucasian would be devastated, but she would get over it.

   The barking snapped her out of her thoughts. The growls were loud and it was apparent that Arthur had found whatever it was. Suddenly, Arthur's growl turned into a painful whimper. The whimper sounded as if his windpipe was being strangled.

   Another sound that came from the path was disgusting. It was a moan of some sort, but the moan also sounded as if there was fluid in the mouth at the same time. Ripping and crying, breaking and snapping. The dog's cries ceased and in the path beyond stood a figure holding the mangled dog head.

   The girl's eyes widened. Not only was there a psycho man in the woods with her, but he looked so familiar. Only in pictures had she seen him. His dark as night suit that blended in with the forest, the pale white skin and long body reaching easily over seven feet, the multiple arms or were they tentacles? The faceless man dropped the dog's head on the bloodied path.

   "Slenderman..." the girl breathed. Her legs locked up, paralyzed with fear. She hadn't meant what she had said about him in the car. It was just a harmless joke. Why did it have to come to this? She held her flashlight in her hand and the beam shook with her nerves. The Slenderman simply watched the girl in silence as she watched him in complete and utter horror.

   He turned his head to the side, as if curious that she was still there watching him. Instead of walking towards her for a capture, he simply disappeared behind a tree. As if on cue, the girl took off in the other direction. The Slenderman, if only he could smile, happily began his pursuit. The girl did not seem all that different than the others, other than the fact that she had been so paralyzed in fear that she refused to run away. Stretching his long legs, he stayed in the darkness so she would not catch him drawing near.

   She ran with all the strength in her legs. The flashlight beam flew wildly as ever until she was forced to balance it so she would not trip. Adrenaline pumped briskly through her veins, forcing her to run faster than ever. Her legs flew over the fallen branches and tree roots. The girl most certainly did not want to trip like all the girls in the movies did.

   A rather large tree root stood out as if to test her theory. The girl jumped over it and continued her run. Mind was racing and sweat was pouring. In her mind, all she could think of was run. There was no plan and there was definitely nothing other than escape. This would most likely be her downfall.

   Silent as ever, he followed swiftly behind. It would not do if she made it back alive. Ever since she entered the forest, he had watched her with curious eyes. He had done this countless of time, but the girl was very much gutsy. Not only did she had three other people that could have kept her slightly safer, she had a dog that would have been essential if she would have kept him before his death. She had decided to go alone, and that is what he liked. She was either stupid, or she was confident that she would escape him. No one had escaped him before. So this was rather interesting.

   Her surroundings started to blur together. She did not notice that she started crying, but it must have been a while ago because the tears were so large that her vision was leaving her. That would not do. She'd be killed in an instant if she became lost. Or worse, if she was backed into a corner. The girl stopped suddenly and realized that she was doing exactly what he wanted. This wasn't the game on the internet about him where you found eight pages while he stalked you the whole time. This was real life and he was smarter than any game simulation made him out to be. With her legs throbbing from running and her chest heaving, she thought of a plan quick while she was resting.

   The Slenderman saw the girl stop, which made him stop as well. She had stopped so abruptly that it could not have been because she had thought she'd lost him. She must have had a realization, or an idea of some sort. He watched silently, not moving a muscle. He was curious to know what she was thinking.

   The girl heard nothing as she paned the across the field she was in. She looked for the specifics such a broken tree limbs to mark where she had been, trails or paths, any dead ends that she could see, and any sign of the Slenderman. All she needed to do was go passed the dead tree area and go straight. If she could just outrun him, then she would be able to make it.

   She sprinted forward. The dead tree area was a little ways away and if she could make it passed that, then she would have a clear shot to the car. Hopefully her family would be in the car so all she would have to do is jump in and they could take off.

   As she was on the run, she felt his presence behind her. She made the mistake of looking. There he was, a little ways behind. His multiple tentacle arms lifting his long body in the air as he traveled like a spider. He picked up the pace as he saw her turn to him.

   The girl sped up with her legs crying out in agony. There was no way she could stop now. Adrenaline was waning and not enough oxygen was entering her lungs. She ran straight into the dead tree area, hoping it would slow him down. It did not.

   She finally got out of the area and ran straight ahead. Her flashlight beam shone any possible things that she could trip on. A root there and a branch here. She dodged them all with surprising grace. She looked back once more and gasped in triumph. He was no longer there. Her heart lept with glee until she turned back forward and screamed.

   There he was, waiting. He had passed her up a while ago and now stood directly in front of her path. His legs made him stand over ten feet, towering over the girl. Said girl screeched to a halt and there they stood. Staring back at each other.

   He turned his head to the side. She was curious to him. Why wasn't she running the other way to get away from him? She was paralyzed in fear yet again. He could easily pick her up and carry her back off to that bloodied path to his lair. However, he did not do that. What was she going to do next, he wondered.

   The girl thought quickly in her head. She told herself to stay calm and not to panic. It was hard, but at least she wasn't peeing her pants, or shorts which is what she was wearing. She thought of ways to get around him without him getting her instantly. Her brain, panicking, made her stick out her tongue and blow a raspberry at him. She paled instantly.

   The Slenderman(if he had eyebrows he would raise one) was stunned. She did such a childish thing to him and it left him curious than ever. How great would it be to add her to his collection?

   The girl took her chance and ran right around him. She looked back at the still stunned Slenderman and let out a cry of victory. She looked ahead and almost wept at the sight. The small red car was parked there with her family still in it. She yelled out to them.

   As the engine started, she did one more courageous thing and lifted her middle finger up behind her as she jumped over the last root to get to the car. However, the Slenderman did not find it very amusing anymore.

   He was growing bored of her antics and wanting nothing more than to capture his prey and move on with the night. He caught her in mid-jump by the ankle. His tentacle that he caught her with slammed her down on the ground.

   She had only been ten feet away when she hit the ground. She looked back to see one of the Slenderman's tentacles tight around her ankle. On the ground, she coughed up some leaves that got into her mouth. She gasped as she felt herself being dragged across the floor.

   She screamed again and this time, her family got out of the car to see the commotion. All three of them froze in place as they stared at the entity.

   "Help!" the girl called to them, "Do something!"

   Both the Latinas in front were so frozen that they looked as if the very breath had been taken from them. The Caucasian, however, gulped and walked slowly around the car. Her legs locked up, but she dragged them along as she reached the edge of the forest.

   The Slenderman watched the other in interest. Fear shone clearly in her eyes and body language, yet she continued to walk closer to him. She was yet another intriguing human. Her legs resembled lead posts, but she continued closer. He did not move a muscle, simply watching her.

   "Hey!" the girl on the ground shouted at her friend, "I'm sorry! He's the one that killed Arthur!"

   The look in the Caucasian girl's eyes shifted from fear to anger. Her legs returned to normal as she picked up a rock and came near them.

   "You b*****d!" she shouted at the entity, "How dare you! How much killing must you do to be satisfied?!"

   The Slenderman was surprised again. Normal reactions would be complete fear of him, but sometimes he would get the angry victims. It was normal to be angry at someone who was trying to kill you. It was just that her anger was stemmed from him killing another. And here he thought he had humans all figured out with their "egotistic selves".

   Out of anger, the Caucasian threw the rock and it went through the Slenderman since he was merely an entity.

   "Let her go." the Caucasian commanded in a clear and concise voice, not something you heard from someone who was frightened.

   The shocked Slenderman obeyed hesitantly. His tentacle released the girl's ankle and she stood up quickly, running behind her friend. The Caucasian pushed the other girl to the car.

   "Everyone, get in the car. Now." the seventeen year old commanded the others, who complied quickly.

   The blonde backed up slowly, keeping her eyes trained on the Slenderman the whole time.

   Annoyed that his prey had evaded him, he stood up straight and disappeared in the dark. He would get the girl later.

   The Caucasian made a break for it and jumped in the car, yelling, "GO! GO! GO!"

   The aunt slammed on the gas and barreled down the road, only for the car to get a mile down before coming to a stop.

   "What's wrong?" the Latina next to her aunt asked.

   The aunt's face paled as she said, "The engine died..."

   Everyone in the car was quiet. All that was to be heard was the laughter of the locust as they sung the family's death song.

Author's Note

Yes, since Slenderman is becoming so damn popular, I decided to write a story about him.

1. Okay, so from what I read is that he only hunts people under the age of sixteen. Now I don't know if that's entirely true or not, but it's a key concept in here.

2. I don't know if blood really smells like copper and iron to everyone else, but to me it does.

3. Originally, I was going to keep the dog alive, but I wanted the main girl to be alone the rest of the way to show that she doesn't need anyone other than herself to get through this.

4. I didn't want to make Slenderman a mindless killer, but instead have him be curious and amused about the way humans act.

5. Yes, she 'blew him a raspberry' and if you don't know what that means, look it up. It's for comic relief. As is the flipping him off. ^^

6. I always thought Slenderman had multiple hands as well, but a lot of sources say they are like tentacles.

7. Now, I'm sure that "he can touch you but you can't touch him" applies here. Since he's an entity and all.

I apologize if it isn't all that scary. I fail at horror. T^T There maybe be a second part.

Reviews

[Emunah June.]

YES!! A STORY ABOUT MY PRECIOUS SLENDY!!! ^^

That was awesome, and that ending line gave me the chills ^^ I wouldn't have loved it if she had to find the notes like in the game, or if you made a reference to them, but without it it was still pretty gruesome and I liked it!

OMG noooo Artie! D:

A few things I can help you out with as for as your AN:

1. He hunts whoever he pleases. Theres been cases where he's kidnapped/stalked adults.

2. It does to me too xD

3. *tear*

4. I would imagine Slendy is curious. After all, he doesnt always kill. Heck, we dont even know what he does with the bodies. There are several suggestions as to what he does with them.

5. LOL!!!

6. No, he got two hands and then several tentacles. So you did it right!

7. Well, see, we dont know if he's an entity or what. We dont know what he is. But the logic you applied fit very well for the story itself.

All in all, a great write that deserves a spot in my favourites!~

[Rae]

I'm so glad you liked it so much. ^^ Thank you for the advice as well. I will use that if I were to make a part two. :D

[Ali]

this was amazing.oh my god,i didnt expect this to be so great