First Night [Open to Multiple]

[heysoulsister]

Jodie Holmes, age six, sits in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. One wall is lined with a mirror that is not really a mirror. There are cameras mounted in the corners, their power lights like unblinking red eyes in the dimness (not darkness; they left the light in the hall on for her). She surveys the sparsely furnished room with her back against the headboard and her chin atop her teddy bear. There is a flashlight on her bedside table, and she knows Cole is just outside. They should be safe here, and she tries to be brave - brave for Aiden, whose fear shivers the tether that binds them.

"Don't be scared, Aiden," she says, hugging her teddy closer. "We're gonna go to sleep, and nothing bad is gonna happen." The phrase has a practiced cadence to it, like a prayer, or a magic spell. But God hasn't stopped the monsters, and she doesn't know if she believes in the good kind of magic anymore.

She pushes her legs beneath the covers, but she doesn't lie down. Something is coming. She can feel it.

Comments

[bluesuit_handy]

"No mouth, no ice cream," agrees Andrew lightly, ignoring the chill in the air as best he can. He'd still like to get a more detailed answer out of her, but he's still cautious about anything that might upset her and bring back the monsters. "That's alright, plenty of people don't have solid bodies. I just wanted to be sure he wasn't left out if he didn't have to be."