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grim-faux · 5 months

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3 _ 43 _ The Biggest Adventure

First - An Echo Rebounds Through the Silent City

It was dark and stuffy when he snapped back into awareness. Foremost, he listened for the sounds. Anything from a misplaced creak to a thunder of erratic weight, or a stray draft, meant danger lurked. It was never obvious, and he had hard wired himself to be extra perceptive if for pick out disturbances creeping around. A stray sniffle from him was enough to turn heavy steps into an explosion of crashing and shrieking. A bigger concern was the sluggish recognition that he had no idea where he was.

Rags. Not wrapped in them but layered under and onto of him. He listened, but no sound seeped through the fiber. Very carefully, he moved. He searched for an opening and freedom, prodding and sniffing for cold air. It was very warm.

With care, he grabbed for open space beyond the layer of rags. Then he poked his head out.

A room. Nothing unexpected about that. A window in one wall, the glass barred swirling thick fog and clouds from creeping into the already chilled space. The walls up and down carried the usual rot that made the timber dangle in fibrous patches, the wallpaper worn in long strips. Along the walls stood bookshelves and other furniture, the large pieces he would always hide under. Or rest under. That's where he should be.

Jolting up, he gawked down at the floor and the furniture. The floor was so far away, and he was lying among the layers of rags.

Mono sprang out from the cloth and plopped onto the floor. He waisted not a second when he touched down and scooted back up under the mattress, clambering into the shadows where he would be hidden from anything that might’ve heard his faint Thump. With clearer eyes he roved over the tattered carpet, taking tally of all the spaces he might cram himself into. That was important for flee. For escape. For anything unexpected.

Everything was strange. He didn’t know where he was or how he got here. He couldn’t remember what was going on last. He was running, and something else happened? It made his head hurt to think. His head always hurt when strange things happened, or he used his powers too much.

Only after waiting for some time did he have the feel that it was clear to move. Nothing about the room changed, and he heard nothing but the faint crinkling of the walls. Against the window fell the soft spray of rain it glittery dots. It was pretty. Most important, sounds didn't scramble in haste to find him.

On light feet Mono crept along the wall to the only door left wedge within the frame and slipped out into the dim corridor. He remained on high alert as he explored along an upper floor, one side of the grim space of the hall led to a descending stairway – that he would check eventually. He focused on the other rooms, making his usual scout of the furnishing and fixtures inside. The rooms on the upper level didn’t have much to show, the walls fitted with cabinets or dressers, all the stuff he took interest in. In the distance the broken rambling of the television crowed as voices cheered, but he didn't know where that might be and he didn't care. One room was a bathroom. He was accustomed to the same stuff, but it was vital for flee to know which doors opened and what rooms had dark spaces.

He went back to the bathroom, first assuring nothing hid behind the scummy shower curtain and the tub wasn't home to some gilled monster, with ropey appendages. He climbed onto the sink and turned one of the faucets, for the water. Following a refreshing (and metallic) drink, he scrubbed off his coat sleeves and left.

The stairs were bent and some of the railing was missing, but it was faithful and quiet. Light pilfered through the dust of the rooms on the lower floor, there was a lot more dark pockets to hide in and more windows that glimpsed the drizzly skies. It was… something, he didn’t know what. Something about standing by the wall and watching the rain gloss over the glass made something in his chest flutter. The ugly weather was outside, but where Mono stood inside the walls, it smelled like smoke and the air was dry. Even his sleeves began to air quickly with all his wandering and scouting. He felt good.

Through a short but eerie passage – almost too eerie and familiar he nearly retreated from it – Mono sprinted to the end, but stopped beside the walls edge.

This room shed no particulars on his searching mind. The crinkling of paper startled him, but only into freezing and making himself a small blemish on the walls corner. A desk sat on one side of the room, opposite of that was a cabinet he could hide in if the lower doors could open. To one side stood a tall lamp, peering at an open newspaper. The fanned paper hid a recliner and the lithe figure seated there, the only evidence of the presence indicated by the long-long legs. In time, the paper crinkled again.

Mono tucked his arms into his coat and curled down, satisfied to perch and wait. Watching was fun. So was waiting. Inevitably though, it would happen. He only had to be patient.

At last! The newspaper sagged down, and a face peered over the edge. The hat unmistakable, as with the wearied face beneath it, and the flashing eyes.

“Aha. There he is,” rumbled the man in the hat. He folded up the wilting papers and settled them over the armrest. “Finally up, sleepy head.”

Mono tucked his head in close beside the doorframe. He was a bit confused and twice conflicted.

“Are we ready for some food?” The Thin Man stood up and glitched across the floor. “C’mon. Let’s see what the kitchen has.”

The gaze and directness threw Mono off, and he stumbled back when he tried to stand up too fast. The Thin Man stepped beside him and beckoned.

“This is no time for dawdling. A very busy day awaits us.” Then he passed into the corridor glitching and teleporting ever few steps, his shimmering shoulders melting into the gloom.

Once Mono was better orientated, he hurried after the lazy strides and buzzing crackle. The Thin Man departed the short hall and stepped into a smaller room, then with a pop and crackle he arrived into the kitchen. Shortly behind the sputtering outline was Mono, always two steps behind.

Mono always knew kitchens by all the cabinets. If there were no cabinets, then there would be a sink, if no sink, there always had to be a cold box, or a large metal box with a window in the folding door. Usually. This furniture stuff was always in a kitchen. And of course, food boxes.

And a table.

While the Thin Man went to some sort of small contraption on the counter, Mono went to work climbing onto the table. He pulled out a chair to make his leap from the seat to the tables edge easier. By the time he was on the tables surface, the Thin Man was already at the metal box fitted among the lower cabinets. He had one of the heavy pans that monsters sometimes threw at children. Except this time, the Thin Man had it on the stove and was putting stuff on it. Or in it. Nothing was going on the floor. The pans and a few other pots cracked and hummed as the Thin man did some sort of new trick, a good trick. He was so busy.

The Thin Man put a spoon into the pan and stirred it around. He took bottles and things, and tossed dust stuff into the pan. It made the sizzling sounds howl, nearly as loud as the static, but not as great. When the sizzling was done, the Thin Man scooped stuff out of the pans and pots and set it on a plate. He made the busy plates like the Viewers stacked by the couches or recliners. The only difference, he set a plate before Mono. Mono was given a plate of his very own.

“Careful. It’s hot.”

Then set another plate across from Mono. Then the Thin Man did something really bizarre. The Thin Man sat at the table behind the other plate. With one of the forks, the Thin Man scooped some of the stuff off the plate and put it in his mouth. After the second bite he stalled, fork still in his mouth, and blinked at Mono.

“You’re quite right, I nearly forgot.” The chair scuffed the floor as the Thin Man stood. In a glittering flash, he returned to the counter and the odd contraption there. He poured black slug into a mug. Not just black slug, but he got some other stuff from the cabinet and the cold box and put that into the mug. He stirred it, and sipped it.

All of this was blowing Mono’s mind. He looked up from the plate and then to the Thin Man, totally lost.

“I didn’t forget you.” He poured some of the mug into a ‘slightly’ smaller mug, and set it beside Mono. “Now we can enjoy.”

Mono watched the swirling lines in the mug. He went ahead and tasted it. Since it didn’t make him retch so it must be okay. He did peer at the Thin Man suspiciously, as he sipped the thick liquid of his own mug. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t water either. It wasn’t mud either. He liked it though. Mostly because the Thin Man had his own mug.

The entire time the rain splattered the door window on the far side of the kitchen, the fork clinked on the dishware the way it did when Viewers ate, only the Thin Man did softer tinkling noises. It wasn't hushed enough to not make Mono wince every time, and he couldn’t move his eyes off the Thin Man. Mono didn’t know if it was his instincts warning him of danger, or just how strange it was to witness the Thin Man EAT AT LAST! How did Mono manage this? WHEN?

Sharing food was the biggest in kid packs. Share food with friends, and have food shared back. And EATING TOGETHER. THE TOGETHER!

He nearly choked a few times as he shoveled food into his face. He was too transfixed by this mysterious happening to pay attention to his own plate.

“Slow down. It’s not going to run away.” But the Thin Man smiled and chuckled.

It was a lot of food, but Mono was still hungry. So, he snuck over to the Thin Man’s side of the table and tentatively snuck little pieces off the plate. The Thin Man always pretended not to notice. Even though he was cutting pieces off and scooting them Mono’s way.

“Today, we will need to visit the store,” the Thin Man was saying. He gripped his mug, so Mono wouldn’t tip it over as he leaned over the lip to drink the last of his beverage. Whatever it was. Mono liked the one the Thin Man had more than the one he gave Mono. Even though they were from the same cup. “But before that, how about we visit the new park that opened? Boy?”

It wasn’t too surprising the Thin Man didn’t lick his plate. Mono did. It was all juice and crumbs. He looked up at the Thin Man as he licked the stuff off his fingers. Stuff on plates was always the best, but always the riskiest food. The Viewers hated when anything made the plates clink.

“Mmm,” Mono hummed. When the Thin Man plucked him up, he squirmed halfheartedly.

“Mmm,” echoed the Thin Man. He took Mono to the sink and took up a rag. With the water running, he scrubbed away all the goop Mono couldn’t clean off himself. Including from Mono’s coat sleeves and hair – he dipped his face a little too much into the cup. “I’m sure there will be lots of other children there. You’ve been excited to check it out. I am too. It’s so rare we see new things put in.”

That didn’t make a lot of sense, but it probably didn’t mean much. Mono fussed and growled the whole time, until the Thin Man relinquished his mission.

“Go play for a bit while I clean up here.” The Thin Man gave his back a light push, guiding him to the doorway of the kitchen.

The room attached to the kitchen place had a couch and a side table with a lamp, where Mono liked to hide. The side table and couch reminded him of something from another time, he couldn’t remember much aside from how much he did like to hide behind a leg of the table. It made him feel better to have the sheltered spaces for hide, even if the Thin Man was always around checking the rooms for him.

“For safe?” he always asked the Thin Man.

The Thin Man would kneel down and pat him on his head, or set a new hat on his head. “It’s safe. What have you been doing?”

On top of the side table awaited crayons and papers, along with some of his unfinished story work. It was all important to tell the stories of everything he did, and the adventures he had with the Thin Man.

He took a bit of color and finished scrawling lines, and then scratched in some colors. The buildings came into shape like he always knew them, the figures poised on the roof gazed skyward. He tossed aside the page before scribbling in that Tower.

A lot of pictures had the city landscape, but he never finished the Tower in the distance. He didn’t know why he kept thinking about the Tower. He didn’t want to. It was second nature just like sneak and hide. The Tower stayed somewhere in his head and he thought about it, even when he felt happy. And if he didn’t have enough to do, the Tower would emerge in his thoughts as something terrible.

'It calls to me.'

“Are you ready?”

Bolting away from among the crumpled pages, Mono looked up to the Thin Man leaning over to look at him. “Hey.”

“What have you been working on?” The Thin Man prodded at the sheets Mono was crouched on.

“No.” Mono slipped off the table and hurried closer to the Thin Man’s leg. He tugged on his pant leg. Don’t look at that. He didn’t want the Thin Man making speek and asking his questions. “No. Mono. Go?”

Sighing, the man in the hat detached his interest from the tabletop and shifted his shining eyes to Mono. “No time to dawdle, eh?” he rumbled and chuckled. “Then let’s get a move on. I’m eager to get out for a while. Go for a stroll?”

Mono bounced on his toes. “Yeh. Go. Am ready.” The Thin Man walked, and Mono partook in his favorite activity of chase the Thin Man.

They departed through the entry door, checking first the scenery and the mood of the storm. The rain drizzled ongoing the way it always did, the open streets and sidewalks hovered in the mist vacant and oppressive. The city was usually a quiet place. The building the Thin Man keeps was folded in among the other buildings, and faced one of the city streets. A set of stairs sagged to the sidewalk, which the Thin Man did his usual glittering and teleport to bypass the cumbersome obstacle. It never ceased to impress Mono how effortless he always did that. Somehow, with a lot of work and busy, Mono would get to be as great.

For now, Mono stumbled down the steps and joined the Thin Man on the sidewalk. The Thin Man glitched over beside a small alcove by the stairs and made a flash with his hand. This compelled the wagon out of hiding. Mono grabbed the wall and hoisted himself up, but the Thin Man gently set his fingers beneath his heels and lifted him the remained of the way. In an awkward somersault, Mono tumbled into the carriage of the wagon with his legs spiraling above his head.

“Oof. You alright?”

Mono launched up with his arms high. “Mmm. Go.”

A soft snicker escaped the Thin Man. “Very well. Sit down.”

Mono followed the suggestion and sat in the wagons back. The rain swirled around his knees as he drew them up. He dug around in his coat and pulled out one of his hats. It was the same as the Thin Man’s, but smaller. It always felt comfy and warm on his head.

Turning away, the man in the hat began to walk. He lifted one hand casually behind the low of his back and beckoned with his fingers. The faithful wagon lurched a bit on its corroded wheels but followed all the same, as the Thin Man walked along the sidewalk, the comforting click of his steps clattered over the soft strikes of rainfall.

Sometimes when they went for a stroll, the Thin Man liked to play games or he did speek for Mono. The speek was always questions or he asked for Mono to tell him stories, or he wanted Mono to make speek about where they would go. How about, what Mono wanted to find at store.

“Food.”

“That’s what you always say.” He looked back and smiled at Mono.

“Go store for.”

The Thin Man nodded. “The store will have other items and trinkets. How about a new hat?”

Mono plucked at a hangnail on his toe. “Mm.” He wasn’t excited about new hats. He had a collection back in his room. Why he didn’t keep them in his coat they way he usually did, that was strange. Everything was strange. The strange made Mono go quiet. The creaking of the wagon became suffocating, like waking up between lays of rags. He couldn’t remember getting tucked into the rags, but it was important for hide.

“Here we are,” the man in the hat announced. “Take a look.”

The walls of the wagon were high when Mono was seated, he couldn’t see much unless he leaned up a bit from his seat. Peering just above the edge, he was meat with the drab landscape and one of the obstacle things built with metal and stuff to climb. Some large tunnels snaked from the floor and leaned onto high platforms, or pipes bent from the floor and ended at the platforms. Some of the platforms had a pyramid shaped roof, shielding the obstacle construction from the rain. Despite the thickness of the relentless drizzle, he could make out all the children climbing and running around the shapes. There were so many kids scampering around, some faces he recognized, some he’s not sure about. Maybe children he met for a brief time, but they ran away. They always ran away.

If he went over there, they would run away. Just like the girl standing beside a tunnel curving downward to a patch of gravel. The clever coat was unmistakable, it contrasted the gray of everything. She was watching him. Mono couldn't see Her face within the dark hood, but he knew it to be so. She would never trust him.

He would never avert his gaze, even when careful hands reached into the wagon and lifted him out. His focus was unbreakable, it was important he never look away.

“There you are. Go find someone to jump on.”

Mono backed away from the open field and gripped the side of the Thin Man’s pant leg. Clutching the dry fabric, he gave his shadowed eyes to the Thin Man and shook his head. For a lone and tense moment, the man and his hat said nothing. The shadowed face watched him, much the same way he stared up at him – the Thin Man was disappointed. He was always disappointed when Mono couldn’t do things.

“We’re not in a hurry,” the voice crackled. “Go see if you can find some familiar faces.”

The droplets pattered against Mono’s hat. His lip quivered, and he smushed his face against the Thin Man’s shin. “Mm-uh. Mhh.” He couldn’t hide the sniffling. He would not. The Thin Man always had children, he liked to go and see them all. Mono didn’t want to share his Thin Man. He just wanted company for a little longer.

“No,” was his muffled verdict. He winced at the fingers wrapping around his shoulders, and he tried to cling tighter to the Thin Man’s shin when he was pried away. “No!” he rasped, as quietly as he could without alerting danger. “No.”

But his fears were unfounded. His runny nose was pressed to the crisp white collar of the Thin Man’s dress shirt. “Oh child. Shh. There-there.” The voice rustled through his ears, drowning out the terrible and chilly rain. The grasp was warm, it blotted out the breeze. “If you’re not ready to cause chaos around the other children, then that is fine. Settle down. No more tears. Maybe when we come back, you’ll feel ready.”

Mono didn’t settle down. He didn’t know why. The Thin Man always made wonderful speek, and his grip kept his body from shaking into fitful ravels. The dry collar soaked up his tears and he liked that smokey smell that he knew was his Thin Man. It was always dry and warm. And then when his silly whimpering faded enough, he was lowered back into the wagon where the four walls blotted the world out. But not the rain.

While the wagon rolled on following the tall-tall silhouette guiding it, Mono laid in the base and watched the rain clouds swirl and churn above.

Not too longer later, or it didn’t seem that long, the Thin Man titled out of sight. The wagon bumped somewhat as it dragged across the threshold and passed under into a scenery different from the constant rain and dreary canopy.

Feeling somewhat uneased, Mono rolled over and quietly sat up on his knees to peek from the wagon. The Thin Man kept the small carriage close as he wandered along the aisles, checking the shelves and mark speek. The man and his hat always paid close attention to the panels with the marks – Mono recognized the shapes, though he knew nothing of their meaning.

Beyond the aisles and cross sections of the floor, Mono watched the Viewers mingle around. None of them came around where the Thin Man was, which always confused Mono. The Viewers only pushed the metal carts around, and they put boxes or other things into the metal baskets. He saw them do this before, but not this often, and he didn’t usually see so many meandering around. It reminded him of something he saw somewhere, but he couldn’t place where. It might've been a book he read about something. It wasn't as important as observing all the different creatures.

The Thin Man didn’t use a cart. He had no need for those things. Instead, he put boxes and stuff into the wagon with Mono.

“Keep an eye on them.”

Mono nodded. “Mm-hmm.” He would not let any monster touch the stuff the Thin Man collected. However, he did poke at one of the bags.

A hand nudged Mono away. “Ah-ah. Not until we get ǝɯoɥ.”

The speek the Thin Man used was strange. He didn’t know the sound of it. He did relent from his curiosity, and left the package be. He stayed crouched by the back wall of the wagon and set his chin on the edge, so he could watch the creatures wander around. Oblivious to him and the Thin Man. He missed having space to lay down, but he didn’t mind all the stuff the Thin Man collected or it encroaching on his space. His work was important, he needed to keep the boxes safe!

One of the last things the Thin Man handed down was a plush toy with a bow on its neck and a hat. Mono very nearly crushed the stuffing out of it.

“You are very mighty, child.”

After wandering the rows of aisles one last time, the Thin Man departed the store and out into the drizzling rain they wandered. The light mist sprayed the boxes, but neither the man or his hat and not even Mono cared. Mono was busy clutching his new gift, and wondering if the Thin Man was thinking of leaving him.

Inevitably though, the wagon did stop as before.

“Look. The park is not so crowded now.”

Mono constricted his plush thing as the Thin Man lifted him from the wagon and set him on the edge of the sidewalk. He wanted Mono to leave. He needed Mono to be anywhere, but near him.

“Go look for someone important.” As ever when the Thin Man greatly desired Mono to do something, he used his hand to push him away.

‘Go use your powers.’

‘Make that wall move.’

‘Channel energy into that lightbulb.’

A gravelly sigh. ‘What did I even expect?’

Mono chucked the plush away and dived past the Thin Man’s outstretched hand. He rushed to the wagon and hid beside the wheel. “No. No. Mono not.” The Thin Man’s steps clicked across the sidewalk to find him.

“There is nothing to fear. You need to run around and make friends.” The Thin Man pulled him away from the wheel and set him before the edge of the drab field. “It looks like everyone is having fun.” He tried to push the toy back into Mono’s hands, but Mono kept his arms locked at his side. Rigid. “Show them your new friend. He has a hat, very much like you. Boy?”

Mono wrenched away and looped his arms around the Thin Man’s wrist. “Leave.”

Another disapproving sigh. “You cannot just cling to me forever, boy. You need friends your own age. Don’t you think?”

He would not leave his Thin Man. He needed Mono! “Y’leave. No. Frr'Mono.” He could feel the Thin Man’s shining eyes stare right into him. Out of desperation, he tightened his grip around the cufflink. And bit. He only let go, when the Thin Man simply pinched his elbow and pulled him away. He lifted Mono on his palm and set him into the wagon.

“One day I will have to leave you.” And he settled the plush toy next to Mono.

Same as before, the wagon began plowing along as it followed the invisible tether to the Thin Man. Mono sat in the wagon with his arms coiled around the neck of his toy, he crushed it so tightly that the head was barely tethered by a few threads.

With his mysterious power, the Thin Man relocated the wagon into the kitchen. The Thin Man could do anything. A spray of rain followed the wagon and man in the hat and misted the linoleum floor. Sweeping his arm above the mess, the Thin Man did away with the dampness on the floor and cabinet fronts.

Mono threw the toy out of the wagon before he climbed out himself. When he found the plush on the floor, he discovered that all the clinginess it suffered tore the head from the body.

“I will fix that for you later.” The Thin Man collected up the bits and scraps of the sad creature, then set them high on the countertop. As before, he pushed Mono towards the doorway of the kitchen. “Go find something for you to do, and I will bring you a treat.”

And same as before, Mono rushed back to his leg and clung to his shin. “Am keep’oo.”

“You can keep me later,” the voice rumbled. “I have to be busy for a while. The sǝᴉɹǝɔoɹƃ will not put themselves away.”

Thwarted once more, Mono departed from the kitchen and went through the other room. He thought about adding to his stories, but he was not in the mood. Scouting was a task of urgency, thus he began roaming through the rooms carefully searching for anything amiss.

In the background chimed the usual sing-tunes of a televisions, but he never figured where it was. Aside from the creaking walls and the occasional lash of rain on the windows, no other noises alerted Mono to skulking hazards. He always entered each room with a light step and a perceptive ear, in case he missed the rancid draft of a breath.

This was the most important job for Mono. While the Thin Man worked downstairs doing his busy, Mono wandered up the stairs and searched through the other rooms there. It was danger to be careless. He went to the room where he spent his time, then he went to the room where the Thin Man sometimes had alone and quiet. It was all as he had left it, everything the way it should be. Furniture in its places beside the walls, plenty of shadow patches to curl up into. Sometimes he needed breaks from the scout, and he would bundle himself up in the gloom and listen for a while, for if something was missed but all the same waiting for a careless child to blunder into a snare. Resting was almost as important as search and see. Mono always wanted a clear mind and break to soothe his muscles from too much everything doing.

After all that wandering around, he made sure the Thin Man was safe. The tol man in the hat was still in the kitchen being his busy, so Mono didn’t bother him with a whisper. He was angry the Thin Man wanted to leave him.

He went down the short corridor into the spare room, where the Thin Man liked to hide away. The lamp always was on, so Mono climbed onto the recliners seat and curled up in the corner beside the arm rest. He shut his eyes and before he knew it, he was in the quiet black and the sounds faded far away. He shouldn’t sleep so deep in the empty nothing, even if he felt secure with his scout. He couldn’t help it.

The next when he awoke, it was to that sound of crinkling pages. He was blanketed in the gloom cast by the very tol man and his hat. The Thin Man held a book up and starred at the marks across the pages. The pages crinkled gently with each flick of his thumb, and the hum of static bristled through Mono’s skin. Mono wanted to stay tucked into his warm cocoon, but his shoulder was crammed into the arm of the chair and buzzed uncomfortably.

He rolled over and stretched out the kinks in his legs. Sitting up, he searched the book for what in the marks the Thin Man was fascinated by, but he remained groggy from his nap.

“At last, he is awake.”

“Hmm. Mono.” He set his chin on the Thin Man’s leg and yawned. “Safe?” He winced when the Thin Man touched his back.

“Yes. I looked around just for you.”

He probably lied. Nothing frightened the Thin Man. He didn’t care about dangers that might steal him or eat Mono. Mono had to do everything.

A sappy gurgle slipped out of him as the Thin Man rubbed the spot between his shoulder blades. That made his angry thoughts fade. The Thin Man was doing company with him and making speek, it was all the stuff Mono enjoyed. He did not like getting plucked up and set down on the cold floor.

“Your food should be ready.” He gave Mono’s back a gentle pat, before straightening up and walking.

Along the way to the kitchen, Mono played another great game of pounce at the Thin Man’s heels. If Mono was able to snag the back of his shoe, he usually got knocked off when the Thin Man took a step. He preferred to chase the Thin Man anyway. This was fun, since the challenge was so big. And tol.

When the reached the kitchen doorway, the Thin Man looked down at Mono between his shoes. “Haven’t we done some speek about being underfoot?”

Mono tugged on his pant leg. “Catch you. Keep.” He put his arms up when the Thin Man bowed forward.

“You can catch me later.” The man in the hat set him on the table. “After you have eaten.” And then he poked Mono on the nose.

On the stove sat a pot with a steaming lid. It’s appearance made Mono nervous, and he watched it cautiously as the Thin Man went to the cupboards. The Thin Man took out a bowl and cup, before returning to the pot. A plume of steam swept from the pot when the lid was moved aside, and a large spoon plunged in. To Mono’s relief, it wasn’t anything but slop spooned into the bowl.

The Thin Man set the steaming bowl before Mono. “Careful. It might be a little hot still.”

When the Thin Man turned away, Mono plunged his arms into the mush and searched for anything suspicious. It was all paste meal, like bread goop. He liked bread goop, it was the best after a long time without food stuff. It was warm, so he scooped out a handful and slurped it.

“Is it that good?”

Mono swallowed a few mouthfuls before lifting his head and nodding. “S’food.”

The Thin Man set his own bowl down at his usual place and reached across the table. “I’m sure it is.” He set a cup down for beside Mono's bowl. “Don’t go swimming in it.”

Mono was too busy working on the meal. He only paused to sip from the cup and then went back to scraping out the bowl. When he got everything out of the bottom, he followed with the usual routine and went across the table to sip out of the Thin Man’s bowl.

“Done already?”

It looked the same as Mono’s, but he did stick his arm in to make sure. The Thin Man never complained when he messed with his plate or bowls or cups. “Same?”

“Hmm,” the static buzzed. “Very same.” He scooped up a spoonful and let Mono try. “And we will play a game after we finish up. What game would you like to play?”

He didn’t care about games right now. Or anything, but having his Thin Man. It suited Mono to be near him and make sure he was safe. That was important.

“Are happy?”

The Thin Man sighed, and gave him another spoonful. “Very happy. Are you happy?”

Mono smiled. This was the best speek. “Have you.” Another smile was his.

“Of course you do.” The Thin Man ruffled his hair, then collected the spare bowl and cup.

This time, the Thin Man let him help clean up the bowls. He didn’t know why the Thin Man cleaned bowls when they were supposed to be crusted with food. Maybe it was in one of the books the Thin Man liked to look at.

To clean the bowls and cups, water went into the sink. Mono mostly leaned over the side and slapped at the water streaming from the faucet. The Thin Man didn’t have too much stuff to do, and soon the plates went into the cupboards. That was the boring part, so Mono did a racing game while he waited. on one of his passes across the countertop, his wet feet slipped and he went skiing toward the edge.

The Thin Man barred his sudden plunge with his arm. “That would’ve been a nasty fall. You need to be careful.”

“Uh-huh.” The Thin Man set him on the floor after that. He looked up, as the Thin Man bent low to look down at him.

“How about this? A seek game?” He gestured to the kitchen doorway. “I will hide away, and you will come find me? You’re good at puzzles.”

Mono titled his head. “Y’flee?”

“I will hide. And you can catch me.” He extended his long arm and gave Mono a poke on the nose. “Give me a head start. Got it?”

A buzzing tickled Mono’s nose. He gave his face a rub, and when he looked back, the man and his hat were gone!

Not under the table, or in the dark corner of the room. Where did his Thin Man go? Mono searched all through the kitchen, and then hurried into the next room.

“Psst?” he cooed. “Hey.” The lamp on the table beside the couch flashed, but he saw no other indication that the man or his hat might be here. “Hey. Am Mono. You… ya’wait.”

Not through the corridor or in the room with the recliner. He thought for certain the man and his hat would come here and be waiting. Mono did search some of the other rooms on the lower floor, but he could not sense anywhere the soft humming that he knew was his Thin Man. So, then he scrambled up the steps, to the upper floor. He called for the Thin Man.

“Hey. Where? Mono here.”

“Very close.” A distant and scratchy voice called.

Mono raced into the room with the furniture and shelves, but there was no sign of the Thin Man. The bulb in the ceiling did flicker. He must have been here. And gone!

“No.” Mono spun around, searching the corners in case he missed the towering shadow.

“You are very close, boy.”

Mono charged from the room and again, he spun around in an effort to determine where the voice came from. It was crackling, the way when the man and his hat sniggered. He had to be somewhere up here. Mono wasn’t fast enough!

The room where the Thin Man went for quiet and alone was open, but it was dim and Mono couldn’t sense the buzzing. He charged up and down the corridor a few times, before sneaking into the room where he woke up in earlier. No Thin Man. Of course.

What if Mono wasn’t thorough with his scout? What if some creature snuck into the rooms and snagged his Thin Man? What if he crawled into the television and got trapped? What if… what if… he always did this! Him Gone!

Mono went into the room with the lamp and desk and searched that one. He climbed onto the chair, poked the corners. He was breathing hard from all the running back and forth, all of it finding nothing. His effort was not enough. He was never enough for the Thin Man. The fear that the man and his hat got lost was growing. He got lost on purpose, and Mono was to be in alone. Mono didn’t want to think he was doing what he always did when he worried about his Thin Man, all while the Thin Man was somewhere else. Not even in the rooms Mono decided he should be in. The man and his hat always found places Mono couldn't follow.

Then! When he slipped out of a closet, he caught sight of the tallest silhouette at the end of the corridor.

“Got. Am got.” He rushed at the flickering figure. Until the lights doused, and when the bulbs flashed back with brilliant light… the man and his hat had vanished.

“So close boy.”

Mono padding footfalls slowed until he was alone, standing in the tingling presence of where the shadow once stood. He spun around, tilting his head back in case he missed anything. “Where?”

“Close.”

No. The man and his hat went nowhere. He had to look for his children and see them all. It was hard for Mono to keep his Thin Man. He always ran away and hid from Mono. Sometimes, Mono was too much.

He wandered back to the room where the Thin Man had alone and quiet, knowing good and well why the Thin Man would never come here. This room was important.

It had the chair Mono always dreamed about. Just the chair. It stood in the center of the room, waiting. Nothing else, and the room was such a contrast to the other rooms. No places to hide, dark and grim. The chair was always waiting. It was nice to think that somewhere out there, someone was waiting for him.

Without warning, a pair of hands scooped him up. Mono thrashed and bit, but with practiced ease the grasp settled him against a crisp and blinding white collar.

“Not for you,” the Thin Man rumbled. He lowered one hand to draw the door and shut it. “Not yet.”

Mono knotted his fingers into the fiber of the shirt collar. “Caught. Am have.”

“And I have you,” the Thin Man’s voice rattled through him. “You were spectacular Mono.”

“Mono. Can keep.”

“If you speek so.” The sharp click of his steps fell into their comforting rhythmic stride. “I had a fantastic game. You were so clever.”

Mono snuggled into his collar. His Thin Man came back. He left Mono for such a long time, but he came back. Someday, he would leave Mono and that will be it. But he liked to have the Thin Man right now.

There were a few other things the Thin Man liked to do with Mono in the room. The man in the hat brought out the blocks with symbols on them, and he showed Mono how to build walls or a building. With a little window. The building had a small space, where Mono could fit inside. He liked to poke his head up, and look at his Thin Man. There was another puzzle kit Mono could put together, and this time, he showed the Thin Man how the pieces fit and what they made. He built a plane. It went tol. And after that, the Thin Man showed him how to fix the soft toy by sewing the head back on. Mono had no idea plush creatures could be put back together. Nonetheless, he ripped the eyes out, and the Thin Man smiled at that.

Eventually, Mono began to yawn more and more. The Thin Man began collecting all the things they were looking at, then divided them across the shelves of the bookcase.

“It appears to be someone’s pǝqǝɯᴉʇ.”

Mono didn’t understand the sound, but he didn’t agree with the Thin Man either. He didn’t flail when the hands swooped under him and carried him over to the bed. “No…” he murmured.

“How about we have some company?” The Thin Man crossed the room to select a book from a stack on the floor, then came back to the bed. He reclined partially against the wall beside Mono, with his long gangly legs dangling off the side. “You wanted me to read this one, hmm?”

Mono didn’t know what any of the marks meant on the cover meant, but he nodded anyway. He clambered up onto the Thin Man's chest and settled his head on a pocket, to incline his gaze enough to see the book. The Thin Man pulled up a rag and draped it over Mono, then opened the book. None of the symbols put onto the pages meant anything to Mono, but there was picture speek as well. He didn’t understand the noises the Thin Man made, but he liked that they could have company. The book was mysterious, it was full of marks pieces and the pictures. Usually, the Thin Man didn’t like picture speek. But he did different things when it made Mono happy.

“Am happy,” he reminded his Thin Man.

“And I am happy too.” The Thin Man smiled down at him. “Now listen.” And the Thin Man resumed, his voice soft and scratchy. It rustled through Mono’s head.

Another yawn found its way out of Mono, and he nestled in closer to his Thin Man. They had so many things to do, later, Mono would do his scout. He would remind the Thin Man how important he was, and the Thin Man would tuck him close and tell Mono how great he was.

“Am keep,” he burbled.

“Yes Mono.” A gentle hand settled on his head and smoothed his hair down. “You can keep me.” The slow and steady crackle of the Thin Man’s speek carried, the silky warbling thrummed through his body. Even if it was all lost on him, the company with his Thin Man was the best. Warmth. Keep. Pack. Everything. The wonderful hum followed him into the dark emptiness of his thoughts, where no dream haunts or angry thumping would traipse the wonderful sensations of all the important. He drifted, reminding himself how to keep his Thin Man and make him happy.

And next time when he woke up, he would go downstairs and find his Thin Man. Waiting, like always. The man and his hat was always up somewhere to greet Mono, and ask how he slept. Or what they might do next. They had many adventures together, and the Thin Man always smiled.

Very slowly, Mono pried his eyes open.

The pale light slipped through the base boards, mixed with the lazy dust molts swirling. Out there, the distant chatter of tunes spun from a television. He didn’t know where it was, only that it was not where he was. He listened carefully under the choppy ramble of the broken noises, none of the scratchy rambling he could make sense of. The cacophony was not enough to drown out the steady creak of the walls, or the steady prattle of rain on a window. Somewhere. The storms always raged and threw their disembodied might against the looming buildings.

No tromping boots and no horrible shrieking above, in the airless space. Just a stale and empty room, which he pulled most of his nest materials from. He even found a dead bird that came from somewhere and ransacked that of feathers. The soft down made the perfect lining for his nest, once he had the rags and other stuff matted down. It kept him so warm since he dragged himself out of the rain. This nest was so good, it fooled him into strange dreams. That was so funny.

Mono rolled over and drew his knees up into the wonderful coat. His shoulder tingled after he had laid on it too long, but that would go away. He chanced a large yawn, and turned his face away from the glaring haze above. More rest was needed. He lost so much energy from the things he did.

As the dream melted away, he recollected what happened and where he was now. The dismal fog still swirled heavy in his battered mind, but crystalline fragments surfaced of the recent events. Most of which he thought about, but didn't explore too much into. It all made his head ache.

Gone. Her. Nowhere when he awoke, his face a bloody mess (he must've looked stopped) and body haggard to threads. Everything in his head was such a confusing mess, he didn’t care where She was. Her. It was a struggle to get his head in order, gather enough of his senses that he could get his balance and at the minimum, crawl across the dusty floor. And where was he? That was furthest from his thoughts. He didn’t have anything to really go on from, except that She was there at one point. He barely remembered he was Mono.

He followed a trail of footprints in the sandy floor, and beneath the dim glow of a high window lingered one of the glitchy children. At first, he thought it was Her, he hoped it was Six, but it wasn’t. Just the shadowy glimmer of a child shape.

Touching it made him feel better. Not when he reached it, but afterwards he could get up onto his feet. After a long amount of searching and being very lost, at his wits with his wretched memories betraying and mocking, he did find his way out of that dark pit. A ladder built by travelers before him led to a broken window, and he was able to get back out and onto the street. Then, he found his way into another building, which he was sure he could get out of again easily enough if something plundered the stale space. He didn’t know if there was any food, but he was in no condition to sneak around or hide. All he could do was rest. Lay down and be still, until he recovered.

So he made a nice nest under the floorboards, and tucked it full of rags and feathers. It was everything he needed right now. Just rest. After he found some food and stuffed his pockets, he would go find his Thin Man. He was always so busy. A little smirk touched Mono’s face.

If the Thin Man knew what he was dreaming about, it would make him so grumpy. Mono would make a story out of it. Maybe. Soft dreams always slipped away. They didn’t help. The dust made hiss eyes water, so he rubbed off the flaking blood and buried down into his nest. He needed to get as much rest as he was allowed now, otherwise, he might not catch it later.

#little nightmares #lil nightmares #the thin man #mono #thin dad #feral mono #a whole fluffy chapter #you will have cavities by the end of this #little nightmares fanfic #little nightmares fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction #so much thin dad dadding with mono

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