Chapter 6: A Matter Of Fear
The new figure was taller than Spring for sure, even without the ears, he was an entire head below this new person. They were thinner than Spring as well, their golden suit, though with less holes, was tighter around their body. Their eyes were very much glowing red, and the first thing they did when they got out of their fake egg was stare at Ford and smile. Their mouth opening as if they were going to say something, but they simply stared. Ford already didn't like this new person. It was different from when he first saw Spring. Then, it was shock that had put him off. A literal walking corpse in a bunny suit will do that to someone who doesn't know it's coming. Now though, he had been told ahead of time, and was expecting this. Now, it was a feeling in the room itself that put Ford off. Spring however seemed unphased. He walked up to the person and tapped them on the shoulder, whispering something to them as their gaze remained unbroken. Whatever he said seemed to cause this new person's smile to grow wider.
Ford stepped back a bit, catching the attention of Spring. He looked at Ford's face, then back to this unsettling figure, who was no longer looking at Ford, but had turned around to look at the fake egg he had been sleeping in. Spring then returned attention to Ford and made a jester as if to shoo him away. Ford was a little offended, but did not talk back as he actually wanted to be away from this creepy person. Unlike Spring, Ford didn't feel guilty about shutting the door with this one inside. He felt bad about thinking that way, but that didn't make it go away. Chip was silent the entire time, but as they moved away, Ford heard Chip give a low crock, his eyes still staring at the two bunnies. As he walked off, he heard something. "Hey, we need to talk!" Spring yelled. Ford looked behind him to find the golden corpse following him with an uneasy walk, completely ignoring Spring as he ran to catch up.
Spring was about to speak, but the figure spoke first. Their voice was a bit more normal than Spring's, and sounded more clear, but as Ford listened, he realized the voice was strange. It was as if there were two voices speaking over one another, echoing each other. The first voice was a fully grown adult's voice, male for sure, but sounded as if he was holding a cough in his throat and could do nothing about it. The second voice was the quieter one, and sounded like a cartoon character, trying to be serious. That voice sounded at any moment, it would break into something like 'Hey kids, if you want a free token, give me a big ol hug.' Ford could not tell which was worse to him, but he was leaning towards the last one.
"I don't think I've missed THAT much during my little nap." He said, still tailing Ford who was on the verge of going pale. Something was wrong. This feeling in his head was now banging, going off like multiple bombs in his mind. It failed to remind WHY he should be afraid, if he had a reason at all, but even still, it had escalated from just paranoia. He was now not scared, but petrified of this creature. Spring did not ignore his discomfort, but merely gestured for Ford to calm down before getting in front of this undead horror.
"Come on, don't try and scare this one off too, we need him." He said to his looming 'friend.' He turned back to Ford. "Don't worry about him, he's just a bit odd. You can call him… um… Screwloose! That works." 'Screwloose' seemingly ignored Spring and promptly walked around him, continuing towards Ford, who still did not like him. The way he looked at him did not help at all. That stare... Something was very much wrong. In fact, now something was off. Screwloose was standing up straight while walking. Ford began speeding up slightly, turning his back to the golden bunny, getting some good distance from what he heard, the footsteps were faint. All of a sudden, he heard Spring yell again. "HEY! NO!!!" He called out. Chip had begun croaking, and now something was off about the way Screwloose's footsteps were approaching. As if he was walking differently. Then, when Ford turned around, he realized why. Screwloose wasn't walking, he was SPRINTING, straight at him. Not running, SPRINTING. As if running a marathon, clearing a quarter of the big amount of space Ford had made by the time Ford had realized.
Within seconds Ford clamped Chip in his hands as he took off himself. He knew he couldn't trust Spring, or this new person. He tried to run but Screwloose was quicker, and in moments was nearly in grabbing range. Then Ford heard something else. Before he could tell what, he was forced to the ground as Screwloose tackled him. Ford screamed, but saw something go overhead quickly before he got pulled back up onto his feet. Even though he could not be sure, he felt he was about to meet another 'friend.'
Ford starred as the object which was indeed someone else. He was relieved to see that it wasn't a bunny, but this relief was retracted when he saw what he had traded that for. Seeing the ears, the snout, that shade of red, reminded him of something. Instant fear. He knew who this was. It was Foxy.
The amount of violent shaking that Ford was now exerting was immense. Every part of his body wanted to run. Run faster than Ford had ever run before, but Spring had since made it to him and would not let him go, keeping a tight grip on his arm and gripping tighter as Ford attempted to pull away. But he had to get away. If things like Spring happened, then all the other stuff was true. Including what Ford saw. He had not listened to his brother's words. He did not forget, he had not forgotten! He remembered what he saw. The boy, the fox, it's hook, and the Drenched Curtain.