Anti couldn't believe that Marvin had changed his mind so quickly. The next morning, he acted as nothing had even happened! Like he didn't remember.

Did he just block it from his own memory? But if that were true, he'd certainly have A LOT to block.

Chase hadn't come down that morning for breakfast and that was . . .worrisome. Usually he was the one to make breakfast, saying the others were shite at it. Anti couldn't agree more.

Henrik said he had gone up to his room to check on him but he said Chase was just tired.

'Bullshit' Anti thought to himself, 'Something's up. I can feel it. I know I should call Sean but can I even trust him with this? Something's wrong and I don't want him to just say I was hallucinating as a side effect of the drug. I know what happened. . .. sort of. I know it was real, at least'

Anti lightly ran a hand over his face. It had bruised pretty good enough that even Henrik seemed worried and asked what happened. Anti couldn't tell him, though. Not like he cared. He had given Marvin a look and simply said he must have done it in his sleep.

Henrik crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at him, obviously not believing it but didn't pry any further.

'Maybe I should get ahold of Dark. He could be able to give me proof on it. Can't count on these fools so it's all I got'

"Yo, Anti!" Jackie waved his hand in front of his face and snorted in amusement, "I know my eggs are crap and all but they couldn't have made you sick. What's wrong? You still edgy from last night and that nightmare?"

"Nightmare?" Henrik asked, sipping on his coffee, "You said you did it in your sleep but you didn't say anything about a nightmare"

Anti glared at Jackie, "I'm fine."

"Fine, huh?" Jackie didn't buy it, "Didn't seem fine between you and Marvin. Seemed like something was up that you're not telling me"

Marvin gave Jackie a look this time, "What are you talking about? Everything's fine"

"Marvin, you were there WITH me. Anti had that nightmare about someone on top of him that hit him and slashed his throat. It was so bad, Anti's neck actually bled again, despite your spell"

Henrik was really concerned now, "Your neck bled?" he came over to get a closer look, "Doesn't look like it reopened. . ."

Marvin suddenly looked like he had an epiphany, "Wait, what!? No. . . . It wasn't real. It didn't really happen to him, Jackie. It was just a nightmare"

"Really?" Jackie huffed, "Because it didn't seem like you thought it was a nightmare when you kicked me out of his room"

"That's enough"

Everyone looked over to see Chase. He looked haggard and wore out. Even worse than Henrik sometimes after late nights.

"Chase" Henrik addressed him, "Vhat are you doing up? You said you were sleeping in. You don't look well, my friend"

Chase just huffed, "Whatever. . . . ." he glanced at Anti but once again, couldn't look him in the eye. Not after last night.

He didn't know what really happened and what he really saw. But he couldn't bare looking at someone who looked exactly like that monster. Scar and all. Chase blinked and sighed, walking over to the pantry, pulling out a large bottle of whiskey from the back.

Marvin quickly teleported it out of his hands, though, "Chase. .. you can't fall back into that habit. It's not good for you"

Chase growled at him, "Fucking circus reject, don't fucking tell ME I can't drink something, especially when I paid for it myself! Give it to me!"

"No"

"Chase, please-" Jackie tried but was interrupted.

"GIVE IT TO ME!"

Marvin shook the bottle and suddenly the alcohol disappeared inside of it.

Chase looked so broken and pissed off, shaking his head, "You have no fucking idea what I'm going through, Marvin!" he looked around at everyone else, "NONE OF YOU!"

His eyes landed on Anti without fear this time, "Especially you. Fucking piece of shit" he spat on the ground in front of him and Anti flinched.

"Okay, zhat is it" Henrik went behind Anti and wheeled him out of the kitchen and into the living room. Anti couldn't even object. He was just as surprised as everyone else. And hurt. Why did Chase suddenly act like that? Did something happen he didn't know of?

Henrik sighed and sat on the couch next to him, "Do not take it personally. Chase did not have a good night, it seems. He probably has already been drinking"

Anti shrugged.

"So vhat really happened to your face, Anti?"

"What do you care? I know you hate me just as much as Chase does right now"

Henrik swallowed, "Dr. Iplier was right. I . . . went back on my oath as a doctor. . . . I just vant to make things right. I vant to help you, Anti."

"I don't believe you"

"Believe me or not, zhat is your decision but I still need to know as a doctor so I can help you. Who hurt you? Zhat is a mark from a hit. A slap, perhaps. It is too on zhe nose to have done it to yourself. So who did it?"

"You won't believe me. Marvin doesn't. No one will"

"Just fooking tell me already. I am curious as vell from your nightmare that Jackie mentioned. I can tell you vant to say something now tell me. I vill listen"

Anti gulped and blinked, looking up at the doctor, " . . . ."

"I promise I vill listen to you, Anti. I vant to help. Believe me"

" . . . . . . " Anti turned away and looked a deep breathe, "I had a nightmare of a man who looked just like me. Called himself Septiceye or whatever. Except. . . . it wasn't exactly a nightmare. At least I'M certain, it wasn't. I don't know if he's a demon or something else. Marvin believed me at fist but then something happened and now he's acting like none of it happened last night. Septiceye hung over me in my bed, taunted and threatened me, slapped me and slit my throat open. . . . And then Marvin and Jackie burst in and he disappeared"

Henrik soaked it all in and thought for a moment, "Vhere do you think he went?"

" . . . . He said. . . ." he sighed in defeat, "He said he was in my head"

The doctor was quiet but thought about it, "Hm . . . .. interesting. Perhaps your memories as just as plagued as ours? Just as Chase told Sean, yeah? That's why you resent him a bit, too? You have the same memories as us? Perhaps it is just your subconscious-"

"It wasn't . . . it was real. I know it was. I didn't slap myself."

"Alright . . . I'll look into it"

Anti furrowed his brow out of disbelief and shock, "Wha . . .. wait, what? You'll . .. what?"

Henrik stood up and pat Anti's shoulder, "I'll look into it. If zhis is something real, then maybe zhe others are having similar terrors zhey are unable to explain and keep to themselves. I'll start vith Chase once I think he's calmed down."

Anti was shocked to say the least. Henrik . . was going to try and help him?

"Uh . . .. . . th-thank you?"

The doctor just nodded, "Vould you like zhe TV on or do you vant to go to your room?"

" . . . I'll . . .. . I'll stay here"

With that, Henrik walked off out of his sight and Anti could only sit there, still surprised. Maybe Henrik had grown after all.

No one had noticed Jameson's absence at the table that morning.

He was always so quiet anyway, they didn't think anything of it.

The mute, however, was still up in his room.

He sat still in front of his small puppet booth he kept in the corner of his room. He sat down in front of it as if waiting on the show to start.

His eyes were blank and unblinking as if there was a strange spell on him he couldn't break.

On the outside, nothing was happening.

But in his head . . . .

A show had begun.

There was music and small puppets that resembled his brothers and him. Dancing around and having fun. It was really quite jolly until the small stage started to get darker and darker, shadows forming all around until the stage was pitch black.

It was like watching a horror movie when Anti's face suddenly appeared behind the curtain.

He grinned from in the booth at Jameson, his eyes pitch black but so . . .mesmerizing.

So hypnotizing.

Jameson stared unblinking into this Anti's eyes as he started to whisper things to him. It sounded like he was whispering directly into his ear from behind him.

Such dark and cruel things.

Things he wished he could forget that Anti had made him do before.

But he couldn't help but listen to every detail.

For he was just a puppet at his master's command.

Marvin couldn't understand what was happening. What was Anti talking about? Maybe he needed some medication or something else nice and soothing. He knew Basil was with him, though, so maybe that would help with the nightmare he had.

The nightmare. . .. Marvin thought about what Anti had told them.

In the back of his mind, he new something was off but whatever it was, kept drifting away from his memory like it never existed. Just a part of his imagination and thoughts.

'Something's not right' he thought to himself, 'My intuition is saying something. Screaming it. But what is it? Did I miss something?'

He felt as if the more he thought about it, the more his brain burned. Why was this so hard to think about?

Then it clicked.

Could it be . . . . something was preventing him from trying?

Marvin narrowed his eyes and motioned for a particular book to float his way. He turned to a specific page and bit his lip.

'Could it be . . . . I need to look more in to this. Maybe there's more to what's happened than I thought. Every time I think about what Anti said, the more it burns as if trying to prevent me from thinking about it. Same for when Dr. Iplier came over. . . . . what the hell is going on here?'

Jackie was surprised with himself that he didn't punch Chase for what happened that morning. After the father went back up to his room without eating anything, Jackie peeked in the living room to find Anti sitting on the couch, having flopped himself from the chair to it. He didn't feel bad that Anti was alone though because actually, he wasn't. Basil, Marvin's cat, had decided to come out of her room and rest with Anti, giving him some company.

'I swear that cat loves Anti more than Marvin' Jackie smiled to himself, 'I don't want to bother him now, though. He looks so peaceful. I wouldn't want to ruin his mood even more after Chase this morning'

Marvin had went back up to his room as always and Henrik left to go to work at his clinic downtown.

'I guess he's still gotta make money somehow'

And Jameson. . . . . actually now that Jackie thought about it, he hadn't seen James all morning.

'He never sleeps in. Maybe I should go check on the old sport'

Walking up the stairs to their rooms, Jackie took his time, still lost in his thoughts. He was wondering what broke Chase like that this morning but hopefully once he was sober, he'd see what he did was wrong and apologize to Anti.

Jackie may still be wary of him, too, but he was keen this time on giving him a proper chance.

He remembered the last time he stayed here and he beat him to a pulp. Knowing now that he most likely beat up an innocent being, it tore him apart and he hated himself for it. That wasn't what he was about.

It's just . . . . well everyone's dealing with their own barriers and memories right now.

The hero sighed to himself to and walked closer to Jameson's door.

He was about to knock when he suddenly . . .heard something.

Jackie narrowed his eyes and leaned closer to the door.

'What the hell is that?'

From what he knew, Jameson didn't have a TV in his room.

But he could hear something strange. . . .. whispering.

Jackie's heart rate picked up. There's no way that was Jameson. He couldn't talk!

He knocked on the door and suddenly the whispering stopped. Jackie tried to steady his breathing, trying to think of anything . . .rational that it could be.

"Uh . . . hey Jameson, you alright in there, buddy?"

The man watching grinned ear to ear as everything started to unfold. It was going to be so good.

Full of drama and angst. So much hatred and sorrow building more and more.

It was all he could do to not interfere himself, to get closer. To get a better view.

And they weren't even close to seeing what was really happening. They were all so stupid, filled with their own anxieties. Blind and deaf to everyone else's pain.

'Let's see . . . I've bothered Anti, of course. Chase and now Jameson . . .. I've kept a close eye on Henrik and Marvin and Jackieboyman's next . . . . now perhaps it's time to REALLY get things started.'