TW: GRABBER POV

Finney never was one to talk much, he either had Robin or Gwen do it for him. He always feared, he’d say too much.
But now there was no one who could speak for him.

He had to explain everything. Everything.

It certainly didn't help that everyone was here. Robin was still standing next to him, offering him the comfort he always did.

Vance was leaning forward, raising an eyebrow while Bruce leaned back, but it was clear he wasn't relaxed.

Paperboy and Griffin kept their eyes on the boys, while Gwen avoided eye contact.

"He.. he didn't do anything to you two, right?"

Robin looked at Finn and took his hand. It was almost a reflex that made Finney feel so much more relaxed. He nodded.

"While Vance was getting arrested he.. he talked to Finn and me." Robin had difficulties saying it, because they all knew what it meant.

All hope, no matter how small, that he maybe didn't remember them, was gone. And he now knew that they remembered.

"He what?! Oh- so that just proves our theory, right?" Bruce closed his eyes, almost like he tried hiding the truth from himself.

Griffin looked pale.

"He-he didn't even plan on taking me that day, right? He-"

"Let them tell us what went down with him, god damn it." Vance interrupted the youngest (or not anymore, since Gwen had established herself as one of them) of the group, who just looked at Paperboy worried but didn't say anything.

"Well..he touched our shoulders. We.. we could wash ourselves off at Donna's, so that hopefully won't be a problem.. so he touched our shoulders. Nothing more luckily. But..he has the boy. And he said something about another game- cat and mouse." Finney wanted to avoid the topic.

It was not like he didn't know it was stupid and absolutely not helpful. He knew that and yet he couldn't stop himself from doing it.

Maybe it was his - kinda unhealthy being honest - way of dealing with all the shit that went down.

He had lost his best friend, he had found out he had the ability to talk to the dead - AFTER he was kidnapped by the murderer of those he talked to, then he was forced to watch a man get an ax swung into his skull, he was malnourished and dirty, he was forced to murder another being (he hated that he at first rejected the thought of this and even now felt weird whenever it was brought up, the man had killed his Robin for fucks sake) and then was thrown back in time without any instructions.

Telling himself that it all was just a dream, was his way of survival. No matter how fucking stupid and naive it was, it'd take a while to get it out of his stupid head.

"You- why didn't you come home?" Gwen looked at the two of them, kinda offended, while Vance just pressed his lips together.

"Another game? Really? And another stupid ass name, as if the naughty shit wasn't bad enough." He hissed, but Finney just sighed.

"We just ran away. We didn't really want to be near him - but that isn't what I wanted to talk about." Finney felt his throat swell up, a big lump building up.

Robin looked at him, worried. He worried about Finn because he didn't know what was going on. Maybe he feared that more went on, that the Grabber somehow did something (both knew it was impossible, but they were kids. They didn't know any better).

Finney sat down, now sitting on the floor.

"Promise not to be mad, okay?"

"Finney what the hell happened?"

"Did you see something?'

"What do you mean?"

"You scare me, Finney. What is going on?"

"You need to promise." he insisted. It may seem childish to want something like this, but Finney felt like he needed some form of support. Some kind of reassurance that he'd be safe.

It was complicated to explain, Finney rationally knew that the others wouldn't hurt him, they were connected on some kind of level and shared - to some extent - the same pain. And yet, Finney still felt like one wrong word, one wrong wording or one secret kept a secret for too long, would cut the connection.

What if they'd hate him?

What if they'd feel betrayed by him?

They needed to stick together, and Finney knew this best, but yet he had lied.

He was a dirty liar.

It would be his fault, if any of them would get hurt.

Emotions are a funny thing, because in one second you feel like you know exactly how you feel, and in the next they are overwhelming. They surround you like a wave of water, crushing onto you and drowning you in them. And yet, they are part of Finney, no matter how much he didn't like it..

He'd always have to deal with them.

Robin didn't say anything, just looked at him. Gwen also stayed quiet, but he felt like she could look right through him.

"I- I lied. Kinda. You guys remember how I told you I didn't have any dreams? Well.. I don't. But I had something similar to phone calls. Like..back in the basement. At first it was Vance's voice.. second was Griffin. And another one..I think it was his voice. I'm not so sure though.."

He didn't look at them. He didn't have the courage to do it.

"But- we never called you. Finn, what do you mean by that? And what?" Robin was the first to speak. He sounded simply confused.

Finney sighed.

"I don't even know what is going on.. hell, Vance was asleep in my bed when the call happened with his voice. And Griffin never called. You guys said something, it was always about him I guess. You remember my nightmare, the one while Griffin and Robin stayed over. I told you it was telling me that he'd change the order, but.. that's where I lied." Finney laughed a bit at the end, but he didn't feel like laughing. He was desperate.

He didn't know what to do.

And laughing was like the only thing right now, that could express it.

"My dream was just a nightmare about the basement. The real reason I knew about this was the call. Vance told me." he looked at Robin.

It was quiet.

And Finney just continued. He couldn't stop.

"And- and just a few days before Griffin called. It was like a poem about a wolf who was waiting, his cave ready for - I don't know if it said rabbit or sheep, just prey - and that the only thing missing is another player."

Again.

Again this threading silence.

All eyes on Finney.

They wouldn't hate him, right?

"Why the hell didn't you tell us?" Bruce, whom Finney was thankful for, was the first to speak.

Though he still heard the confusion and hurt in his voice. And Finney didn't blame him.

He was stupid for not telling.

"I was afraid. Don't you get it? I lost my best friend, I lost Robin. I had to see how people got kidnapped right on their way home. I was kidnapped and almost murdered. I learned that I can talk to the dead, that I was special . And then I just get thrown back into the past. I know what will happen. And then.. It's just overwhelming. I am afraid right now." he tried to explain.

Griffin looked confused.

"Finney.. those calls were warnings . They were meant to warn us about him. "

He saw how the younger one tried to not sound offended and judging, but he ultimately failed.

Finney felt helpless.

"I know now. But I didn't know then. I just thought maybe..maybe it was like the constant feeling of paranoia. The burning glance on my neck, or the whispers of my name.. the shadow I see in the mirror. I just thought - no I wanted to believe that it was nothing." his voice grew more desperate.

He didn't want them to hate him.

He didn't want them to be angry at him.

But he knew, he couldn't hide it any longer, and that it was wrong.

Vance groaned, though he sounded like he didn't know if he should be mad or if he should cry (either of laughter or frustration, Finney didn't know)

"I swear to fucking god, that if you hide this shit from us ever again, I'll snap your fucking neck in half and rip your throat out. You can't keep these things a secret god damn it." he sighed, and Bruce nodded.

"I am not as extreme as Vance, but Finney, you can trust us. Maybe we could have even helped to try and find out what that even was."

Robin took Finney's hand, but all he could do was stare at the floor beneath him.

The others didn't act like they hated him, they were upset and maybe hurt - though Finney hated this even more than the possibility of just being hated and never talked to again - but they didn't hate.

Gwen was the next to say something.

"And you say I should always tell you if I have a dream? Finney, that can be dangerous!" she scolded, but her voice was filled with concern.

Finney loved Gwen, he loved her so much that he'd always choose her before himself. And yet, he always hoped he wasn't like her. It wasn't like he hated the dreams in general, he just hated how it hurt Gwen. And he didn't want it. He didn't want to be special even though it saved his life once.

"We don- okay who in the Blake Family doesn't have powers?" Paperboy tried to say something, maybe trying to calm the situation down, but immediately cut himself of and just sighed.

"Me and Finney, apparently. I have dreams that show me things I shouldn't know, and Finney here can talk to the dead." Gwen explained, and Griffin looked back and forth between the siblings.

"So we have two super heros or something on our side? That doesn't sound..too bad." Maybe he was trying to calm himself down.

Gwen excitedly looked at the boy, a hint of surprise in her movements.

"That doesn't creep you out?"

The boy shrugged.

"I am supposed to be dead and in the past, so you getting dreams is just really cool and interesting. And it explains why I remember your face." he explained.

Robin was still holding Finney's hand while slowly sitting down beside him and leaning against him.

"You could have told me Finn.."

"I was afraid, Rob.." he admitted.

He was even now afraid, but he didn't admit it. They had so many bigger problems than Finney living in denial.

He knew he was selfish for just ignoring it.

Maybe if he hadn't ignored it, the Grabber wouldn't have been able to grab this new boy…

"We make a new rule especially for you Finn.. not ignoring anything that seems weird, alright cariño?" He whispered to Finney, but Finn just nodded. He didn't know if he could stay true to his word, but for Robin and the others, he'd try.

Vance cracked his neck, and shook his head.

"Okay so we have a psychic, a boy who can talk to the dead and gets weird ass phone calls, and five others who remember being fucking murdererd and certain things. Fucking great. How is that supposed to help us kill that motherfucker?"

"Well we could still overpower him. We are six against one- seven if Finn doesn't kill me for letting you join in, Gwen. And with those calls we could be watching over the guy, if they warn us what he is doing." Robin had his mask on again. He tried to see light in the dark.

"And we'd be arrested because that piece of shit managed to trick the police. We are too big of a group to not be suspicious." Vance reasoned, clearly frustrated, but was silenced by Bruce hitting his shoulder softly.

"But what even are those calls? Vance and Griffin, heck if it weren't my bullies back then, he couldn't even have called me." Finney seriously doubted that the Grabber would just randomly call him and tell him he wasn't alone. (if it even was the Grabber, Finney wasn't even so sure)..

"It couldn't have been us, as we already said.. and you couldn't have this info. So.. what else could it be?" Griffin brooded, and Bruce chimed in.

"Well.. it was your and Vance's voices. So maybe something.. idk. Maybe something for Finney to make up for not dying?"

"Why would he even need something to make up for not dying?" Robin rejected the idea immediately and Finn also nodded.

"Sounds unlikely.. I mean if you count talking to the dead, I already have this thing. So it has to be something else. And secondly, all this stuff here has rules. Robin remembers the most out of all of you, because he.. because he died as the last one of us, and Griffin only remembers faces because he was the first to die and see all of us.. Everyone who died in the basement or was involved in it, remembers a bit or all of it, besides Gwen - so you need to have set foot down there. But we didn't get any powers that we didn't already have. But these calls don't follow any of that." he murmured and sighed.

This was the reason Finney would have liked that those calls were nothing more than just his imagination. He wouldn't have to think about it and wouldn't have to constantly fear that each call was someone who shouldn't be able to call.

Suddenly, a light went off in Gwen's head.

"Wait, Finney, you said Vance, Griffin and maybe the Grabber called, right?"

She leaned forward, grabbed her book.

Finney looked at the title of it.

The science behind the supernatural and ghosts

Finney didn't even remember she had that book.

"When did you get this?"

"A while after you began acting weird. I picked it up from the library a few days ago, because I had a weird feeling." she explained while she sat up straight and put the book onto her lap.

"And you said that it was impossible for them to call you, right?"

"Yes. I don't even know if others can hear it. So.. only me. Wait- Gwen you don't mean to imply that Ghosts are calling me, are you?" Finney raised an eyebrow. Robin besides him just watched, while Bruce opened his eyes and Vance looked at Gwen skeptical.

"Well, we have one thing making that theory useless; We are very much alive right now." he said dryly.

Gwen just rolled her eyes and opened the book.

"Of course you guys are alive right now Idiot, I am not stupid. But I've read something. Robin is the only one who remembers being a ghost, right?"

The mentioned boy kinda raised his head.

"Yeah..a bit. After the hijo de puta was dead, I didn't remember anything but feeling somewhat afraid. I just know I couldn't leave the basement. I don't know where the others were, they were in an in-between, but we all were trapped in the basement."

Gwen nodded, and Finney leaned forward.

There couldn't be any ghosts calling him, right?

The ghosts were trapped in the basement, they couldn't leave and the phone wasn't connected. The ghost could maybe leave if the Grabber was dead - but he wasn't and neither were they.

Bruce looked skeptical, Vance full on looked a bit disinterested, though he still listened.

"Here! Found it! I'll read out loud:

Ghost, as we describe it, are often described to be seen after events that left the victims in agony. Sometimes it's a sudden death or strong emotion that holds the "ghost" in place and keeps it there. Murder, great pain after fighting an illness, strong emotions or simply a death we didn't expect. It keeps part of us here, an imprint of our energy left behind, that some may describe as our own soul. We don't know whether it is conscious  and realizes what it is, or if it's simply a matter of energy left behind. "

"Well that just explains why we stayed behind. That weird stuff Robin calls in-between must have been where our consciousness stayed or some shit. But how does this help us?" Vance groaned, earning himself another slight hit from Bruce.

But for Finney, it felt like the world slowed down a bit. And he knew Gwen knew what he was thinking about.

Energy can only be transformed into something else, but it can't be destroyed.

"So you mean in the basement was the energy, aka the ghosts, left behind? But we went ba- wait." Finney paused and looked back and forth between the others.

"You aren't implying that- that there are ghosts left behind?" he didn't want to believe the whole thing, but actually, it made some sense. (he couldn't be too picky about this, after all. After all, he had time-jumped, or whatever that was, could talk to dead people and the dead were alive again. So some other ghost versions weren't so far off..)

The others looked at them.

"But why would that happen? We are alive. And even if, how would Finn's home phone be called?" Robin sat up, pressing Finn's hand harder.

He didn't mind. He liked Robin's touch.

"Energy can't be destroyed, if we believe the book, and my experience, your ghosts are Energy left behind. And since it can't be destroyed.. it stayed behind. Even after time got turned back or whatever happened."

Finney always was interested in science, be it math, physics or chemistry. He was good in those subjects.

Bruce went pale.

"So.. we have ghost versions of ourselves calling you? That sounds crazy."

"See, that's why I didn't even want to acknowledge it!" It may have been a bit inappropriate at this moment, with this conversation, but Finney just felt relieved to hear someone else call it what it was. Crazy. Fucking crazy.

Griffin leaned against the chair and sighed loudly.

"So..we may have no idea how those calls work, but let's say they work. Finney always got the warning before it happened. So those ghosts can keep an eye on him. Doesn't this solve our problem? I mean, that we wouldn't know what he is up to with him knowing we know." He thought out loud, and Paperboy nodded.

Finney felt the pressure, the lump in his throat go away slowly. It didn't go all too bad.. Donna was right. These were his friends and his sister and Robin.

He loved them and would kill all over again for them. He would try not to lie again.

(Though he knew, it'd be difficult. Finney liked to ignore the problems until they became so big that they were swallowing him whole)

Vance scoffed.

"Alright so we have to deal with a fucking stalker and kidnapper, maybe a already  murderer if they didn't find the boy, and ghosts. This is weirdly enough not the worst spring I'll encounter."

Finney knew this comment had even more double meaning, since Vance was kidnapped in spring. But they'd prevent it. And Finney hoped they could find the boy. Alive.

Finney nodded.

"I'll try talking to them if they call again. But guys.. we already established that our rules also apply to him ." he swallowed hard.

Robin just smirked at him.

"What's an old ghost and an old dude gonna do against seven alive people, five ghosts and maybe the brother ghost? We will show him who the real cat and mouse is. As long as you tell us whenever you get a call."

Finn always smiled when Robin smiled, especially if he smiled at him.

"I'll try.. I promise."

Unbeknownst to his boys, the man walked down stairs.

He didn't like it, but it was better than having to end his game early.

He was wearing the frown, because he knew his latest boy had been trying to alarm the police outside. But of course, Albert had prepared himself for it.

With a creak, he opened the door, which was to be honest just placed there to give Albert a feeling of home.

But now he had something else to give him the feeling of something he knew, though he knew it'd never feel like it felt with them.

But he'd take what he can get.

"Huhu, sleepy boy.. I've brought you breakfast! I just need one tiny thing from you..your name."

He knew, the boy couldn't replace his boys, his toys he longed for ro be close to him again.

But soon, soon he'd have his chance.

He'd just have to play cat and mouse.

Notes:
LORE?!

Vance: I just work with you guys to kill him. No hard feelings (besides Bruce)
Also Vance whenever one of them tries talking themsleves down when he is near: I'll fuck you up if you do this shit again motherfucker.

Translation:
cariño- sweetie/sweetheart

Robin and Finney are so inlove but they don't realize it smh.. They are as oblivious as I am.