Ted Spankoffski was used to being the center of attention. Even in school, he was the loudmouth who took the pressure off kids like Jimmy or Rebecca. Today was no different.

He rooted around the library, trying to distract himself amongst the leather and paper and wooden shelves. He'd seen this hot blonde librarian through the window and rushed in to make her acquaintance, but she was busy helping some wrinkly old man check out a thesaurus. "If she can't see how amazing I am by now, that's her problem."

He almost left, but as his slender fingers slid over the spine of every book on one of the shelves, he paused. Feeling a pulse emanating from the black cover, almost like the book was alive. He pulled the book out, examining it for a title and author but only found a strange white pentagram on the front. He looked around and saw no one paying him any mind and flipped open the book. The pages were yellowed but pristine, the words written in a strange flowing script that seemed to shimmer under the harsh library light.

As his eyes read the words, he noticed a small tingle on the parts of his fingers that were touching the pages. He winced and quickly recoiled from the book and stared as he saw the blood singing the page. His world seemed to distort and elongate. The lights flickered once, then twice, then black.

When Ted opened his eyes, he wasn't in the library anymore.

He stood in the middle of a vast and endless plan that seemed to stretch for miles, an incomprehensible field of black and white hills. The ground beneath his feet was neither solid nor soft, just a blur; And the sky above was an endless void of muted nonexistent color. There were no clouds, no sun, no stars -- only the void.

Before he could even think to scream, a voice echoed through the empty space.

"Welcome, to The Black and White," it said with a high-pitched chuckle.

Ted spun around his heart racing. A figure appeared in the distance, shrouded in shadow. As it drew closer, the color it egressed from its being seemed to blind him. Bright oranges and yellows were the only thing now in Ted's field of view. "I am The Bastard of Time and Space, and you can call me Tinky!" It giggled, "And you, Theodore Spankoffski, are now a part of the game." (THE GAME THE GAME THE GAME YOU LOSE THE GAME HAHA)

Ted tried to speak but no words came out. He glanced down at the book still clutched in his hands. The pages were blank now, and the weight of it seemed heavier, as though it was pulling him toward something he couldn't understand.

"You have entered the realm of The Black and White," Tinky continued. "This place exists between the borders of reality and imagination. Everything here is a choice. Every move you make, every thought you have, will determine your fate."

Ted felt a chill run down his spine. "You kidnapped me? Are you serious? I can't even get a date with a cute librarian but I can get kidnapped by a time lord? You've gotta be fucking kidding me!"

"Ah," He said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "In The Black and White, there are no shades of grey. Every decision, every moment, is either right or wrong. There is no room for doubt."

Ted looked around at the barren landscape, now beginning to swirl with faint black-and-white shapes. "Guess I can cross that off my 'Things I Wanted to Do Today' list."

Tinky giggled softly. "That is the true question, isn't it? The only way out is to choose. Will you follow the rules of The Black and White, or will you defy them? But remember, Teddy-bear, the rules are simple: one mistake, and you may never leave. If you never leave, you will forever be my toy!"

Before Ted could respond, the landscape began to shift, and he found himself standing at the edge of two massive doors. One door was entirely black, the other entirely white. Each seemed to pulse with a strange energy, beckoning him to choose.

"Choose wisely," Its voice echoed behind him.

Ted swallowed hard. He wasn't sure what would happen if he chose wrong. "Great, now I have to choose between two terrible options. Can I just flip a coin and let fate make my mistakes for me?"

With a deep breath, Ted stepped forward and opened the door to the black side.

As soon as he crossed the threshold, the world around him shattered, like glass breaking into countless pieces. The book fell from his hands, the words now returning to the pages. The library lights flickered back on. Ted blinked, and when he opened his eyes, he was back in the library, safe and sound.

The book was gone, and he was alone.

Ted didn't know how long he had been gone, but he felt... changed. Something in him had shifted, something subtle but profound. He glanced around, half-expecting to see The Bastard of Time and Space standing behind him, but the library was silent. It was as if nothing had happened.

Until he heard a voice echoing, so loud it sounded like it was coming from right above him and everywhere all at once like he was a genie in a bottle. "Soon, I'll have the whole set in my toy box~" It purred, the familiar giggle of It.

Ted now held something else in his hands, a simple note that read: PROPERTY OF T'NOY KARAXIS.

"Fuck."

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Art by ceres_coelacanth on Tumblr