"Hoodie, we can't involve her! She just got lucky with Ben, that's it!"

"EJ's been stalking her since she was thirteen, dude! She's already involved, it doesn't matter how! All that matters is we tell the extra long baguette about her, and at worst, she stays in the mansion as, I dunno, a helper! An assistant!"

"And you think she's just gonna go along with that? We need to get her home and tell everyone to stay the fuck away from her! Involving a normal human like her is only going to bring trouble for us!"

"I still think she can be a CP! She just needs a little push-"

"Shush! Stop talking! I think she's awake..."

I hesitate to open my eyes, still trying to shake off the sleep that clung to me. I hear someone walk around in front of me and crouch down, gently shaking my shoulder.

"(Y/N)? You up?" Hoodie's voice asks.

"No... I'm down..." I respond, batting his hand off me and rolling over so I faced towards the back of the couch. Masky laughs somewhere nearby and Hoodie chuckles, standing up.

"Well, you can stay down a little longer then. Masky and I plan to head out soon though, and I'm... not too sure about leaving you here on your own, so try not to stay down too long." He says, walking away. Masky approaches and nudges my legs aside, sitting on the end of the couch and turning the TV on. I crack one eye open to glare at him for the noise, but he just laughs. I let out a yawn and stretch my limbs out, making sure I kicked him at least once (which he found immensely funny) before sitting up and trying to orient myself in the world again. I feel Masky's eyes on me and glance over, only to have him quickly look back at the TV.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it." He responds, though I can hear repressed laughter in his voice. Squinting at him in distrust, I stand up and wait for the dizziness to pass before walking into a bathroom I had spotted the previous night, flicking the curtains open. I glance in the mirror and am greeted by my face with almost every inch covered in childish drawings... with permanent marker.

"MASKY!! HOODIE!!" I shout, rushing to the door and slamming my hand against the frame.

"Shit dude go go go!!" Hoodie shouts from the living room as Masky gasps for air, wheezing on the floor. Hoodie sees me approaching and ditches his friend, dashing out of the room. I jump on top of Masky, straddling his chest while beating at his arms as he tries to defend himself, laughing too hard to have much strength to resist my attacks. Once I'm satisfied, I stand up, searching the rooms in the apartment to find Hoodie. I could hear him snickering nearby and follow the sound, grinning evilly. I reach a cabinet and throw the doors open, Hoodie releasing a girly squeal as I set upon him, tears leaking from his eyes from laughing too hard.

"Noooo stooppp I'm so sorry!!" He gasps, shrinking back as I laugh, throwing one last punch into his shoulder before stepping back and letting him out.

"Well, now that I've had revenge, I'm gonna go clean up this mess you two made of my face." I say.

"Like it could be any more messed up than it already was!" Masky shouts from the other room, followed by a crash as he presumably jumps out the window to save himself. We both laugh and Hoodie eventually throws a spare change of his clothes at me.

"Go take a shower, it's probably the only way to get all that off." He chuckles. I grab the clothes and poke my tongue out at him again, shuffling into the bathroom and slamming the door for good measure. After making sure both the door and window was locked, and drawing the blinds again, I strip out of my clothes and run the shower, scrubbing at my face with a towel I found in a cupboard. After a gruelling ten minutes of continuous scrubbing, I'm finally satisfied that I had removed all the marker, and turn off the water. After drying off and putting on the clothes that Hoodie had allowed me to borrow, I realised they were a bit big, but fit rather nicely. The shirt he had given me was plain black, but the hoodie he had given to go over the top was a detailed galaxy at the top, with a paint bucket spilling beneath, covering the galaxy in a layer of white. The sleeves hung past my wrists and I found my face completely shrouded when I pulled the hood up. The pants were plain black cloth, reaching just past my ankles. I bunch up my old clothes and leave them on the bench, planning to ask Hoodie for a bag to borrow that I could put them in for now. When I walk out of the bathroom, my hair still slightly wet, Masky (who had returned from jumping out the window) glances up and wolf whistles at me, nudging Hoodie. Hoodie looks up and stares at me for a while, making me slightly uncomfortable.

"You guys ready to go?" Masky asks, saving me from the uncomfortable silence. I nod, approaching the door and pulling on my socks.

"Where are we headed, anyway?" I ask, tying up my shoelaces.

"You'll see." Masky grins. I sigh, knowing I should have expected this answer, but still hoping for a different one. Hoodie chuckles, reaching up and ruffling my hair.

"Don't worry about it kid, we're not kidnapping you or anything." He says.

"I didn't think you were going to, but that sounds suspicious." I laugh, smoothing my hair back down. Masky laughs and opens the door, leading the way back down to the car park.

"I'll tell you this: The first stop is breakfast." Masky says as he slides into his car, starting the engine. Hoodie steps up to the passenger side door and opens it, bowing towards me while sweeping his arm towards the empty seat.

"Your throne, majesty." He smiles. I snicker and take the seat. Masky revs the engine, one hand resting on the gear stick and one on the wheel, grinning over at me.

"You suuure you haven't forgotten anything?" He asks. My heart thumps involuntarily and my mind forms a thought faster than I can stop it.

'Maybe my innocence but hey you're ho-'

'NOPE.'

After my little mental episode, I shake my head, hoping to play it off as though I was just thinking. He turns away to look at the road and I sneakily let out a breath, propping my elbow on the windowsill of the car and resting my cheek in my palm, staring out the window. We start moving and, after a while, Hoodie speaks up from the back seat.

"You look out the window a lot, huh?" He asks.

"There's not much else to do in a car." I say, not looking away from the window.

"You don't get bored?" He continues, leaning forwards slightly.

"Not often. I'm usually pretty good at finding stuff to do."

"Huh. Sounds lonely."

This catches me off guard. I glance back at him over my shoulder, watching him watch me.

"I'm not lonely. I've just got a good imagination." I say.

"I dunno much about you, (Y/N), but you sound pretty lonely." Masky says. I feel the air shift in the car, turning more serious.

"What makes you say that, then?" I ask, returning to staring out the window.

"Lets just start with the fact that you decided to trust us to take care of you last night rather than the policeman. We could've hurt you, y'know." Masky says softly. I shift uncomfortably.

"W-Well, you didn't give off that vibe. Plus, Hoodie had helped me get home earlier." I say, starting to feel nervous, "What brought this on, anyway?"

Neither of them answer, adding to my anxiety. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Masky sighs and pulls over, turning in his seat to talk to me properly. I clench my jaw, edging one hand towards my seatbelt buckle and the other towards the door handle.

"(Y/N), look, you're a good kid. But you're mixed up in something big. We were talking about it when you were still asleep, but..." He says, glancing towards Hoodie for help.

"I... We need you to keep an open mind, okay? We're going to visit someone, and... uh... they might not... let you leave..." Hoodie mutters the last part, so low that I couldn't hear it, and ask him to repeat it.

"I said, we're going to visit someone, and I don't know how it'll turn out. But, please, just trust us." He finishes, looking up at me. I hesitate for a bit, the men waiting patiently for a reaction. They had been nothing but kind to me so far, but this conversation was throwing me off. I didn't have anything waiting for me anymore, sure, but was I really going to trust these two people I had known less than a day to take me to a mystery location where I may or may not be in danger?

"If you don't want to come with us, that's fine. You just have to say so." Masky whispers, his voice holding a tiny shred of hope. It was that hope that tipped the scales. I shake my head, Masky and Hoodie deflating slightly as they take it the wrong way.

"You've been nothing but nice so far, and I trust that, if this mystery place is dangerous, you'll be able to protect me. Lets go." I say. Hoodie's face splits into a grin and Masky smiles, starting the car up again and driving down the road once more.

"I was worried you'd walk out there! Whew." Hoodie mutters, staring down at his hands.

"Well, that was kinda scary. I was worried that you actually were going to kidnap me for a moment!" I say, hoping to lighten the mood once more. It seemed to work, as both of the men let out quiet laughs, though my hands were still trembling slightly.

"Nah, we wouldn't do that. I did tell one truth though; first stop is breakfast, I'm starving." Masky says, making us laugh. He pulls into a small parking lot adjacent to a restaurant, cutting the engine and getting out. The cashier at the register perks up as we enter, her eyes on Masky and Hoodie as though I wasn't there. We find a table separated from anyone else, Masky and Hoodie sitting beside eachother with me on the opposite side, my back to the wall. The woman at the register passes off the job to a waiter, taking his place and approaching our table.

"Can I get you three anything?" She asks, glancing at me momentarily before returning her gaze to the other two. I feel myself irk at the treatment but before I could say anything, Masky speaks up.

"He and I will just have a slice of cheesecake. Not sure about her yet." Masky says, gesturing towards me.

"I'm... right here you know." I mutter, crossing my arms. He smiles at me, missing the waitress's glare in my direction.

"Are you ready to order, miss, or would you like me to return later?" She asks with disdain, lost on Masky but not Hoodie. He narrows his eyes up at her, casually draping an arm over the back of his chair, keeping his eyes on her with a slight frown on his face.

"Just give me a breakfast muffin, please." I ask before Hoodie can say anything. She nods, writing down my order beside the others on her list and walking away. I turn to the boys.

"Cheesecake? For breakfast?" I ask incredulously.

"Masky here has man periods he needs to comfort himself through." Hoodie says, grinning slyly. I laugh as Masky shoves him in the shoulder, almost knocking Hoodie from the chair.

"Hey!" Hoodie protests as the waitress comes back, balancing two plates of cheesecake and one plate with a breakfast muffin on her arms. As she reaches the table, she places the cheesecakes down carefully, but almost tosses the muffin plate at me.

"Bruh." I say aloud. She sniffs, turning away from me and walking back to the counter. Masky tears into his cheesecake like a rabid animal, which I guessed by now was just how he ate, while Hoodie eats in a more refined manner. We sit and chat for a while before Masky suddenly realises he had a piece of paper in his mouth, and Hoodie noticed an identical scrap on the side of his plate. The paper scraps had a number scrawled on them, making them both annoyed.

"That chick isn't even doing her job. And trying to hook up with customers? One moment, I'll be right back." Hoodie mutters, looking apologetically at us.

"Sure, sure. Go be a Karen then." Masky smirks, propping his head up on the back of his hand, staring out the window to the street. Hoodie snorts in response, standing up and walking to the counter, the scrap of paper held loosely in his hand like he didn't even want to be touching the thing. I watch in amusement as he confronts the lady about it, handing the paper scrap back to her and exchanging a few choice words I couldn't quite hear, though I'm sure they weren't very pleasant. She seemed ashamed once he was done, and didn't glance back at him as he made his way back to us.

"Have fun?" I ask. He laughs shyly.

"N-Nah, I usually don't enjoy stuff like that. I just hate people who discriminate against others for no reason." He says, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah, alright, Mr Righteous. Lets get going." Masky smiles, standing up and leaving the money to pay for our meals on the table. I follow them out and we get on the road again, taking a road out of town.

"I'm guessing I'm still not allowed to know where we're going?" I ask, feeling slightly more relaxed accepting that than I was this morning.

"Unfortunately, no. Super secret club stuff and all that." Hoodie laughs.

"Sorry, (Y/N), but you'll understand soon enough. We're almost there."

With that, Masky pulls off the road and onto a small dirt path, so overgrown that you would've easily missed it unless you knew exactly where it was. I grasp the edge of the door, keeping my eyes out the window, watching tree trunks pass dangerously close to the car. Before long, Masky pulls over behind a clump of bushes and trees, hiding the car from the dirt path.

"We gotta walk the rest of the way. There's no real path, unfortunately, but don't worry. Hoodie and I know the way by heart." Masky says reassuringly, stepping out of the car and locking it once we were out. I nod, following Masky as he leads the way while Hoodie walks behind me, trying not to stumble over any exposed roots. The further we go into the forest, the jumpier I become, repeatedly trying to spot routes I can use to escape in case the boys suddenly decide to... take advantage of being all alone in a creepy forest. Masky suddenly holds up a hand, startling me into stopping. He drops silently to his stomach, squirming forwards and gesturing for us to do the same. I squirm up beside him, peeking over a log and feeling my breath get taken away by the small herd of deer grazing in front of us. They use their noses to push aside the fallen leaves littering the ground to get at the grass underneath. They stay there for a few minutes longer before moving on, disappearing into the forest. Masky stands back up, brushing himself off.

"Pretty cool, huh?" He asks, smiling as he continues along his route.

"Y-Yeah, that was pretty neat." I admit, chuckling quietly. He glances back in response, noting how I had my arms drawn up around my body and was glancing around.

"Hey, (Y/N), you're safe with us. Don't worry so much." He says, giving me yet another reassuring smile. I take a deep breath and nod, but can't make my hands let go of my arms. We walk in silence for a few more minutes before Masky stops and turns back to me, a lopsided smile on his face.

"We're here, but please (Y/N), remember to keep an open mind." He says as he pushes aside a particularly large bush. I gaze upwards in shock at the sprawling mansion in front of us, its massive doors locked up with a padlock and chain. Hoodie steps up beside Masky as they go to unlock the door, pushing it open with a loud creak.

"You're not taking me to a haunted mansion are you?" I ask, apprehensive. The two laugh.

"Nah, I can promise you that nothing haunts this place." Hoodie says, reaching back for my hand. I glance down at his waiting palm and cautiously put my hand in his, allowing him to guide me through the door. Masky shuts the door behind us but leaves the padlock laying nearby.

"Seems we're the only ones home at the moment." Masky announces, but just as he said that, a small girl clutching a teddy bear comes screeching around the corner.

"MASKY! HOODIE! YOU'RE HOME!" She shouts, flinging herself into the air to tackle hug Masky.

"H-Hey Sals! Did you miss us that much?" Masky laughs as she removes herself from him, then jumps up at Hoodie. He releases my hand and wraps his arms around her, swinging her around in a circle. She squeals with glee, then notices me.

"Oh, hi! I'm Sally! What's your name?" Sally asks as Hoodie puts her back down. She seemed a bit shy, one small hand reaching up to grasp Hoodie's jeans, hiding behind him.

"I'm (Y/N). It's nice to meet you Sally. But, guys, do you leave a little girl in here all alone?" I ask, crouching down and extending my hand towards her. She moves forward slowly, then reaches out and shakes my hand, giggling as she does so.

"Someone else is usually around here, so they keep an eye on her. No, we didn't kidnap her. I can see you thinking that." Hoodie chuckles. I stand up, ruffling Sally's hair as I do so.

"So, why did you bring me here?" I ask, hoping that now we were at the destination they would tell me why.

"It's becau-"

"YO FUCKERS I'M HOME!!" A new voice suddenly announces as the door is kicked open, slamming against the wall. Sally squeals again, throwing herself at the newcomer.

"Jeffy!! Hoods and Masky brought home a girl!" Sally says, hugging a twenty-something year old man wearing a white, albeit stained, hoodie and black pants. His black, stringy hair fell to his shoulders, and his skin was an ashen grey colour. His eyes were sunken and had heavy bags underneath them, the irises concerningly small. What caught my eye the most, however, was the carved smile on his face. It was a scar that ran from the corners of his mouth all the way to his cheekbones.

"What the hell?" I ask, stepping back. Jeff's eyes dart to me and he carefully puts Sally down.

"Well, that's not a nice greeting. How would you feel if someone said that every time they saw you?" He says, his eyes darting to Masky and Hoodie, "What are you playing at, you idiots? You know you're not supposed to-"

"Look, Jeff- Um, (Y/N), could we have a moment please? Maybe Sally would like to have a tea party?" Hoodie asks apologetically. Sally, however, lights up and jumps forwards, grabbing my hand and leading me away.

"Come on! I'll make it the best tea party ever!" She says. The three men behind me start speaking, but I was already too far away to eavesdrop. She makes me sit at a small, child-sized table and procures a fake tea set from somewhere, pretending to put water on the stove to boil. While the behaviour was cute, I can't take my mind off Jeff's carved smile. Just what were Masky and Hoodie doing with a guy like that?

"Here you go, but be careful! It's hot!" Sally interrupts my thoughts, setting an empty cup in front of me on a small plastic plate. I thank her and raise the cup to my mouth, sipping at the "tea" and listening as Sally puts her stuffed bear on a chair and serves him a cup as well, then takes her seat and starts talking.

"We barely ever meet new people here! Jeff's not so bad, once he warms up to you. Masky and Hoodie are like brothers, both to me and to eachother! And you can meet the others once they get back! There's a lot more boys than girls so I'm looking forward to having a new friend to play with!" She says, throwing me off guard a bit.

"S-Sally, I'm sorry, but I don't plan on staying. I might visit once in a while but-"

"Hey girls, sorry about that. Jeff was just throwing a hissy fit again." Hoodie suddenly announces. I look up and he was leaning against the door frame with his hands in his pockets, watching us have the tea party.

"Aww, is the tea party over already?" Sally whines, pouting. Hoodie chuckles, entering the room and ruffling her hair.

"For now, unfortunately. Don't worry though, this shouldn't take very long." He says, glancing at me. I take the cue and stand up, thanking Sally for the tea party.

"No problem! We can have another one once you're done!" She says excitedly. I smile and wave, following Hoodie, deep in thought. As a result I almost bump into his back when he stops in front of a large door. For a second I think it's the entrance, but this was on the second floor. Hoodie knocks first, and when there's no answer, he slowly pushes the door open. A large office comes into view, bookshelves covering the walls with a large desk situated in the centre of the room.

"That's strange. Slendy's barely ever out." Hoodie mutters, walking into the room and opening the desk, pulling out a phone. He dials a number on it and presses it to his ear, waiting for a response.

"Hey Slendy, it's Hoodie... Yeah, we got someone for you to meet... Um, yeah, it is... Alright, see you soon." He says, then hangs up and places the phone back where he found it, turning to me.

"Unfortunately, he got called away for a while, but he'll be back soon. We should just be able to wait in here." He says, walking to a bookshelf and selecting one, sitting in a large, plush chair. I settle for sitting in the corner and taking my phone out, starting up my favourite game. About twenty minutes of silence pass before the door to the office opens and Hoodie jumps up, quickly replacing the book and standing to attention. A tall, bald man in a formal business suit enters the room, his skin unnaturally white, but I couldn't see much else from where I sat. I stand up, putting my phone away.

"Good afternoon Hoodie. Is the girl still here or have you sent her somewhere?" The man I could only assume was "Slendy" asks. Hoodie nods in my direction, mouthing at me "open mind" as he does so. The tall man turns around and I almost scream. He had no face, simply small indentations where his features should be.

"Oh, my, I'm so sorry child. I probably gave you a fright, didn't I?" He asks, walking over to me and kneeling down. I press myself back, my face turning pale with fear.

"Err, Hoodie, could you please provide assistance?" The man asks, glancing back at the man. He was struggling to hold in laughter, so I shoot him a glare for good measure.

"D-Don't worry about it, (Y/N). Slendy wouldn't hurt a fly. Unless that fly hurt someone else, but, um..." He laughs, though he was still trying to hold it back so it sounded like a dying animal. I snicker, Slendy taking that as a good sign and standing up again.

"My apologies, I just realised I haven't introduced myself yet. I am Slenderman, the overseer and protector of all the people you will find in this mansion. Would you like to take a seat?" He offers, gesturing towards his desk. I nod, following him to the desk and sitting in one of the seats in front of it. Hoodie closes the door to the office and situates himself beside me.

"As I understand it, you've been involved with us for quite some time, though you've been unaware of it?" Slenderman asks. I remember Masky saying something along those lines, so I nod. Slenderman nods in return and turns to Hoodie.

"And you brought her here for what reason? I'm not against the idea, however I'd like to know your motivation."

"Well, sir, on the day I first spoke to her, a long-time bully of hers had been found dead in the school. Later, when I got her home safely, Ben had broken in and chased her out of her house. When she ran into me again while I was waiting for Masky to pick me up, she told me she had stabbed him. I thought it best to protect her until she was safe again." Hoodie explains, confusing me slightly. It sounded like he knew the person who had broken into my house. Slenderman nods, turning to me once more.

"I assume they told you nothing of what we are?" He asks. I shake my head as Hoodie grins shyly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"We thought it best we, um, let her hear it from you. We're not very good at explaining stuff and she'd most likely run away and be in even more danger."

I start to feel a bit tense again. Slenderman notices and offers a few reassuring words, telling me I'm safe with them, but it doesn't help much.

"I guess I'd better start from the beginning then. Do you remember when you were... twelve? Thirteen? Someone had cornered you in an alleyway and attempted to rape you. You got away because a third person you hadn't seen had stabbed the man in the back?" Slenderman says, bringing up some bad memories for me, but I nod anyway. I wonder what this has to do with why I was here.

"The unseen person was someone who lives here. You see, we like to protect those that can't – or won't – protect themselves. Just recently, in the incident with your school, you refused to stand up and fight back-"

"You're the ones who killed her, aren't you?" I ask, horrified. Slenderman quickly shakes his head, fidgeting his hands slightly on the table.

"No, that was not our doing. It was someone from outside our group, and now, they're a danger to you and everyone around you. It's for the best if you stay with us, where we can keep an eye on you, until we can sort this out-"

"SLENDY!! GET DOWN HERE, QUICK!" A loud shout comes through the door. Slenderman is up in a moment, glancing back only to give Hoodie an order.

"Stay here and protect the girl. I'll be right back." He says, disappearing through the office door. I stare at it in concern, wondering what was going on, when Hoodie reaches across and places a hand on my shoulder.

"It'll be fine, don't worry about it. Slendy'll be right back." He says, flashing me a reassuring smile. I nod, and suddenly realise this was the perfect time to ask some questions of my own.

"Hoodie, when you were telling him about... the break in... you sounded like you knew the person." I say. He glances over at me in surprise but tries to cover it with a cough. Slick, Hoods. Real slick.

"T-That's because, um, I do know him. He's not a bad guy, though, a-and I think he was just trying to help you. Kind of... what we're doing right now." He laughs nervously. I nod, the scenario making more sense now. I feel slightly regretful at stabbing what I guess was Hoodie's friend.

"Hey, um, I'm sorry for stabbing him." I murmur. Hoodie laughs.

"Maybe save that for him. You can meet properly in a while, if you decide to stay." He says, though the last part was a bit quieter. I could tell he was worried that I would leave, and I'll admit, I was tempted to. The danger of an unknown person killing those around me, however, was also a strong factor. At that moment, Slenderman walks back in, as though nothing had happened.

"My apologies. LJ came back with more wounds than expected this time. He's with EJ as we speak." He explains. Hoodie seems to tense a bit. "Worry not, Hoodie. He'll be just fine. Now, back on track. (Y/N), you know of what we do now, and understand the dangers, do you not?"

I nod.

"Have you decided whether you would rather staying here or returning home? Keep in mind that here, someone can stay by you and offer protection at all times, however at home we might not be able to offer assistance." He says, watching my face for my reaction. I nod again, showing that I understand and have come to a decision.

"I'd like to stay here. Only temporarily though, and if... if I change my mind, I'd like to be free to leave any time I want." I say. Slenderman nods.

"That's a reasonable request. Welcome to the mansion, (Y/N)."

~

5k words holy shit