>The next thing you know you’re at her side, shaking her uncontrollably, trying to wake her up
“What the hell did you do to her!?” You scream at the doe, who looks vaguely concerned at either what just happened or at how you’re reacting
>”You’re overreacting,” she says, though there is a questioning tone in her voice. “She’s… she’s probably just unconscious.”
>She snaps her fingers and stares down at her companion, the rat, who darts forward and throws her head onto Gloria’s chest, listening for a heartbeat
>There’s a moment of silence and a span of time where you don’t even breathe
>Oh fuck
>You… You killed this gir-
>”She’s still breathing, and I can hear a heartbeat,” the rat says, raising a thumb into the air. “It’s faint though.”
>Vanessa lets out a held knot of air
>You nearly collapse into a stressed-relieved pile
>”Good!” She says. “I didn’t want to kill her. Now, fetch her, Anonymous.”
>The fuck did this bitch just say?
“I’m sorry, but what? I’m done, right? I did what you wanted.”
>Your tone is somewhere between pleading and outraged
>Vanessa smirks a knowing, shit-eating smirk at you that you want to punch off her face. “Not quite. You might have noticed you’ve been acting like a total pussy for the last few hours, right?”
>Oh no
>Was it that obvious?
>You nod, ever so slightly, a bead of sweat sliding down your forehead
>The smile on Vanessa’s face grows even wider
>”The curse is wearing off. I’ll need to reapply it. But this time it’ll be stronger than it ever was. Once you help us, that is.”
>I’m sorry but did this bitch say it was a curse?
>ANON, THERE SHOULD BE ALARM BELLS RINGING INSIDE YOUR HEAD
“N-No. I… I…” You start
>The smile on Vanessa’s face collapses into a scowl
>A pair of fangs slide out from her lips
>”You know we trust you, right? You know a lot about us — what we’re doing here, what our plans are — and with the Spooktober Fest so close, and our goals nearly in sight… you aren’t turning your back on us, right?”
>She opens The Book of Wrath again
>The Behemoth blinks in next to her
>”Because I really like you. Of all the obnoxious cunts at this school, you’re the only one who seems to get what it’s like to be an outcast,” she says, a slight smile returning to her face. “And you always will be. People don’t change. I like that about you. I like who you are.”
>The Behemoth growls, and you clap your hands over your ears
>She motions towards the beast weakly
>”Though if you did decide not to help us, I can’t say for sure I have total control over the Behemoth yet. It has gotten away from me more than a few times this morning — roaming the halls, doing fuck knows what.” She raises an eyebrow. “Do you catch my drift?”
>You swallow hard and nod
>You fucking pussy
>You find yourself back in the clustered annals of the school, which run like tangled veins above the gym and ultimately onto the roof where you spent your Friday night, Gloria’s crucifix stuffed into your pocket hastily
>You have the goat slung over your shoulder, her useless weight threatening to drag you down to the floor
>And fuck, it’s so hot up here still
>It feels like a smokehouse or sweat lodge
>Why would anyone willingly hang out up here?
>You jerk on your collar with one free hand
>”Hot, isn’t it?” Vanessa glances back at you
“Well, if you consider heat stroke-tier hot-” you sheepishly reply back, out of breath
>You shift Gloria’s dead weight on your shoulders
>Vanessa’s gaze finally leaves yours
>You’re starting to get the feeling that she might not trust you
>”Stick with us, and maybe we’ll even juice you up so you can carry even more dead weight next time.”
>As if there will be a next time
“T-Thanks,” you reply in a wheeze
>The Book of Wrath glows with unnatural light, serving as a kind of flashlight for your unwilling trek
>You can’t help but feel watched — hunted — by the Behemoth, which flashed out when you entered through the secret door in the gym’s equipment closet
>Lord knows where it is now or what it’s doing
>Does this count as a hostage situation?
>You try to make small talk with Vanessa, but she only wants to talk about other stuff — in particular, how much she hates everyone
>See, to Vanessa, everyone is a normie (excluding a few people: yourself, Mike, Alex, Gloria, Jenna and Sam)
>Oh, and Louis, that one gray wolf from English who always has bugs crawling in his fur
>Everyone else is stupid cattle who hates her
>You almost point out that she’s an entire bitch, but you keep your mouth shut
>What the doe fails to grasp is that her victim complex is completely fucking obnoxious and if people hate her, it’s probably because she thinks everyone else does and acts like it
>A real self-fulfilling prophecy
>You’ve never exactly had many friends (three, if you’re counting Sam now), but somehow you didn’t turn into a bitter cunt like she did
>Do her ‘friends’ even care as much as she does? Or are they just dressing for the part?
>”And people don’t change,” she concludes. “They’ll always be scum. Frankly so will you and I, but we’ll at least be in control finally.”
>You have to slap yourself in the back of the head to keep your eyes from rolling back even further into your skull
>It’s going to be a long, hot walk in the annals of the school
>Somehow, even in the gloom up here, you’re starting to get a sense of familiarity. You guess you’ve done this before and the light from the book (seriously, you’re so far beyond questioning shit nowadays) doesn’t hurt
>You feel you’re near the room with the altar and the weird writing on the wall
>Or maybe it’s got something to do with the fact that you still have the red book with you
>It might help guide you-
>Wait
>You pat your breast pocket
>SHIT
>The red book IS still in there
>The book they NEED to complete this ritual
>Shit fuck shit shit shit fuck
>Anonymous, you absolute fucking idiot
>You clench your jaw in anger, wishing your neck was between your teeth so you could gnaw your stupid head off
>You’re sweating by the time you reach the ritual chamber somewhere between the gym and the roof
>And it’s not just from the exertion
>How long do you have before they figure it out?
>The room is just as you remember it: a semi-large concrete square with a stone basin at the center, lit with an unnatural pinkish glow despite there being no source of light
>There’s a smearing of dried blood in the basin in the center of the room from where Sam fell and hit his nose, but otherwise, the basin is clear
>The walls are schizophrenically covered in etchings and bizarre marks, most notably a large ‘31’, signifying SOMETHING is going to happen on Halloween
>You swallow hard
>Okay, Anonymous, you’ve done as they asked
>Now you need to find a way to slip the fuck out of here without being caught or stopped or searched or…
>You shudder
>…Made to join their cult
>Not that being a complete traitor ISN’T cringe, obviously
>Vanessa stands before the altar and draws a small razor out of her bag
>Of course she has a razor
>She jerks her chin at you, hair falling over her face
>”Bring forth the offering, Anonymous. And then stand beside me.”
>Her voice is commanding
>With stuttering heart, you obey
>The way you see it, you’re kind of fucked and should just play the part until you craftily think of something
>The two other goths under Vanessa’s command step back and block off each entrance
“What are they d-doing?” You stammer, your heart stumbling with sudden concern
>Your fear is apparent, and this seems to please the sadistic doe
>”There’s something we need to talk about. But first, the ritual. Lay the goat on the altar.”
>You hesitate
“You’re not going to kill her, right?”
>The doe laughs
>”And spare her from all the fun that’s coming this Friday? No, no. She’s just going into a long, unnatural sleep. Think of it like a coma. Thanks to this little book here.”
>She pats The Book of Wrath harshly
>How can you trust her words?
>Oh, that’s right, at this point you’re being held against your will now — her trust is irrelevant
>And you’re also back to being a gigantic puss since their curse wore off
>A puss who signed a pact with these weirdos
>You meekly tell yourself this a spy mission
>That’s right, you’re gathering valuable intel on them!
>A-After all, you didn’t like Gloria anyway
>Despite how incredibly guilty you feel, you’re glad for what you’ve done
>Awww fuck, you know you’re full of shit and you ain’t proud of anything
>You’re scared as hell right now and deep in enemy territory
>You might fight back if you were Mike (who you’re starting to miss right now)
>But you’re not, you’re-
>”Anonymous?” Vanessa says through clenched teeth. “You want us to juice you back up?”
>You nod weakly
>You might need a little courage here for what’s coming next
>It could help you beat them
>”Lay the goat down,” she commands, her tone clipping on the last syllables.
>You heap Gloria onto the altar after another moment of hesitation
>She sinks neatly into the large stone bowl
>Almost like a little bed for her
>Vanessa grabs a hold of her wrist in one fluid motion, and gives Gloria a rather large horizontal slash across the wrist
>Blood sops into her fur, stymieing the flow at first, and then it all pours out in a steady trickle around her
>You rub your hands nervously
“You swear you won’t hurt her?” You lurch forward, but step back as you catch a hostile glare from Vanessa
>”I PROMISE she won’t die — yet. God, you’re acting like you’ve got a crush on her or something.”
“I don’t it’s just- I don’t want a murder on my hands and-”
>You’re cut off by the Doe’s harsh laughter
>”You really don’t seem to get it, do you? Nobody is going to die, but nobody is going to be the same after Friday night. Everything is going to be irrelevant, and you, me, and everyone else in this room right now? We’re going to finally be the ones in control, watching while everyone suffers.”
>”What about Lydia?” The she-rat asks. “She’s not here.”
>Vanessa, pushing Gloria’s blood stained body onto the floor with a grunt, takes a moment to gather herself and wipe a wet smearing of blood onto The Book of Wrath
>”She’s on a special assignment in town right now. But rest assured, she’ll have her place in our new paradise. You all will.” She sweeps her eyes around the room, lingering on you
>You lift the goat out of the basin and try carrying her over to a wall so she can rest… somewhat comfortably…
>”You don’t need to waste your time with her. She shouldn’t be able to feel a thing. Now, come watch while I put the collar around our new pet,” Vanessa says
>You rise to your feet
“You mean that THING? The Behemoth?”
>The doe flashes a fanged smile
>”Yes, that ‘thing’, when at full strength on Friday night, will be capable of turning this world from mundane to beautiful, beautiful madness.”
>You cringe internally and externally
>But this is the kind of information you came here for, so you press on despite your increasing fear that you’re trapped in a bad teen movie or book
“And what… exactly is it?” You ask
>Without looking at you, Vanessa replies, “It’s a lesser god of some kind. It was summoned last Friday night — though we’re not entirely sure how. Without the other book and a blood sacrifice it couldn’t have been brought here. That just tells me that someone else has it.”
>She frowns
>Gee, who could be holding onto the other super important book?
>”This puts our whole operation in danger,” she says
“Danger? How?”
>”The Behemoth is loyal to the holder of The Book of Wrath, but with both books it can be undone. Kate fucking Winslow lost the Book of Rite, a red book, in the girl’s bathroom at some point and never found it again — and whoever has that book began the ritual last Friday. Thankfully, we do know the beast is loyal to me — kind of. All we need now is to invoke the ritual and I’ll have greater control over it. That should make finding The Book of Rite easier. And then this whole glorious enterprise can commence now that we’ve got the blood of a pure virgin.”
>A smile presses onto her lips
>”I love having control over things. Over people. Don’t you?”
>Fuck no you don’t
>You’d like as little control over someone as possible
>Still, you nod firmly in agreement, trying the best you can to play the part of sadistic edgelord while you rack your brain searching for a way out of this mess
>Pleased, Vanessa turns her attention to The Book of Wrath
>The pages begin to glow with an unnatural light as the blood dries and disappears into the pages
>The book vibrates with increasing intensity before slipping out of the doe’s slick grasp and flying into the air above the stone basin, where the shallow pool of blood begins to bubble
>The writing on the wall begins to glow. The occult symbols shimmer and burn as if they’d been traced in fire
>This is it
>You can sabotage this now, grind the whole damn thing to a halt
>Do you rip it out of the air and try to get out via the roof? Push the others out of the way and escape to the gym?
>What about leaving Gloria here?
>It’s not like you can haul her with you in a daring rescue — you’re weak as hell
>The ground start to shake
>Alright, it’s almost show time. How are you going to do this?
>How can you d-
>The book drops uselessly into the blood, and a horrendous, ear-rending scream can be heard echoing throughout the halls
>You clap your palms over your ears
>Vanessa and her rat friend collapse to the floor in balls of pain, trying desperately to drown out what must be an extremely high frequency screech only audible to anthros
>As the earth-shaking noise subsides, you’re left standing in the dimming glow of the room, lit partially by the walls as they shine with singed carvings
>Vanessa throws herself upon the altar
>”What the fuck is this shit?!” She screeches, quickly raising The Book of Wrath out of the shallow pool of crimson. “Why didn’t it fucking work?!”
>Wat
>It didn’t work?
>IT DIDN’T WORK!
>You did it! By doing… absolutely nothing?
>The other two goths approach the altar looking dismayed
>”What do you mean it didn’t work? How can you tell?”
>"The Behemoth… It should be right here… I should-” she opens to book and flips to an earmarked page
>She dips her finger in some of the blood and smears it across the tea-colored paper
>The doe looks around anxiously, and after a moment of stunned silence, she screams
>”FUCK!”
>She throws her head down against the stone basin, teeth grating against one another in fury
>You take a step back, silently relieved
>This crazy week is over
>Friday’s bullshit will never come to pass
>It takes everything you have to hold back a smile
>Alex and Sam are safe
>As for Mike? Fuck that guy, but you can’t be angry right now
>You can only feel elated
>Everything is going to be oka-
>”What the fuck is that?” Vanessa lifts her head
>Her eyes narrow in on a dried bloodstain left on the inside rim of the basin
>It’s Sam’s bloodstain, caked on from where he fell and conked his nose on Friday night
>”That’s blood,” she snarls. “That’s someone else’s blood!”
>She opens The Book of Wrath, scrapes a little dried blood on her fingers and makes a strange symbol on the pages of the book
>The blood saturates into the page and then fades into nothingness
>The unnatural light in the room flares up and flickers like a fire suddenly stoked with gasoline
>And then there’s a hissing sound
>You all turn to the wall directly adjacent to the altar — the source of the noise
>A new name is burning brightly on the wall
>’Samantha Garlen’
The Leaves of Fall Act 2: Fear the Nobodies (Part 18)
You've never really 'fit in' with the heavily divided Ranchview High School crowd. Jock, Goth, Prep, Cheerleader, Nerd... you were never any of these. But as Halloween approaches, strange things start happening, and a dark ritual begins with the finding of a curious red book. It's a race against time for you and your friends to stop a group of students from ushering in an age of darkness, and to also figure out just what the hell is wrong with that rabbit.
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About this version: originally, The Leaves of Fall was split into two pastebins to compensate for the length of the story. Given that pastebin has chosen to censor this story for ambiguous reasons, it will forever be stored here and on AO3. This new version contains spelling, grammar and content fixes. Please understand that the content is all the same as the earlier versions minus some sentences being changed and fixed up. I cannot stress this enough: no new content has been added. It's my hope that this is a cleaner, easier-to-read version of the story.
Cover: https://imgur.com/a/vZS4Q
Sam (drawn by Akella of /hmofa/) https://imgur.com/a/nk3t1wT
Fan art collection: https://imgur.com/a/SCCSIQv
Accompanying playlist (WIP): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9aXlzDRA49QKxgYsOV2JuDd410_nI-0J
Alternative link: https://www.sofurry.com/view/1479078
Total word count: 147,552 words
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
About this version: originally, The Leaves of Fall was split into two pastebins to compensate for the length of the story. Given that pastebin has chosen to censor this story for ambiguous reasons, it will forever be stored here and on AO3. This new version contains spelling, grammar and content fixes. Please understand that the content is all the same as the earlier versions minus some sentences being changed and fixed up. I cannot stress this enough: no new content has been added. It's my hope that this is a cleaner, easier-to-read version of the story.
Cover: https://imgur.com/a/vZS4Q
Sam (drawn by Akella of /hmofa/) https://imgur.com/a/nk3t1wT
Fan art collection: https://imgur.com/a/SCCSIQv
Accompanying playlist (WIP): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9aXlzDRA49QKxgYsOV2JuDd410_nI-0J
Alternative link: https://www.sofurry.com/view/1479078
Total word count: 147,552 words
4 years ago
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Estimated reading time
13 Minutes
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