September 21st, Ghastly's POV

"Testing, testing, 1 2 3. This recording? Okay. Entry number 112. It's been a total of 111 days since Papa went on some mission. I'm still staying with Mr. Killer, but he hardly hangs out with me. I find that odd. He always has something to do. Chores, even when there are none, run errands, meet with the others, etc. Sometimes he comes back and has to wash his clothes from ketchup he spilled on himself. For example, Mr. Killer is out getting groceries right now. But he's been gone for five hours. Mr. Encre and Fallacy watch over me more than anyone. I love them, they're so nice. Jasper is fun to play with, which is one of the few things I can do these days. Mr. Killer won't let me do anything. Go outside to play, nope. Go with him where he goes? Nuh-uh. Visit the others? Nah! The snow outside is taunting me. I can't even eat food when he's around because it may be poisoned! Ever since Papa left, he's been very protective yet so distant. But I get it, I miss Papa too. I just wish he'd come home soon. Complete mission or not, I want him back. I am starting to worry. Papa....No, he's out there. I just need to look on the bright side of things. Too bad I can't visit anyone or E!Pap and Uncle Dream or someone would probably be able to give me to optimism. I'll give an update tomorrow."I say, making a voice recording

I click the stop button and tuck it in my pocket. I sigh and continue to stare out the window, completely bored. Dunno what to do. I hear footsteps. I look away from the window.

"Hello Mr. Encre. How are you? Oh, wait, pretty good I assume."I say with a smle

"Bonjour, Ghastly. Em, yes, I'm good."He says

Encre smiles at me. But he has Fallacy hovering behind him, chuckling with his arms around Encre. This has grown normal.

"May I go outside to play?"I ask

"Hmm..."Encre thinks on it

"Oh come on, love. Let him. He hasn't gone outside or anything in so long. He should have some fun. It won't be so bad."Fallacy says

"But what about Killer?"Encre asks

"I will handle him."Fallacy says

"Sure, go ahead."Encre says

"Yay!"I cheer, running outside

I start making snowangels and running around, having as much fun as possible. Then, I get an idea. I start to make a snowman. I put a lot of effort into it and then start the second. Then I do a third. I made the third smaller. I step back and look at my work. I smile. I break a twig off of a bush and dig a line around the three snowmen, making a heart. I smile. 

Perfect now.

"Huh, nice work. I'm sure they'll love seeing that."A voice says

I turn and jump, finding someone I haven't seen before leaning against another house's wall. And they were casually holding a weapon on their shoulder. He wears a mask, a small jacket with tie and shirt underneath, jeans and boots. I step back nervously.

"Woah! Relax! I'm not gonna hurt you......You're father sent me."He says

"M-My father? Is he okay? Is he coming back soon?"I ask

"He's...He's coming. He's fine. You're Ghastly right? His son?"He asks

"Mhm. Who are you?"I say

"....Étoile. I've been sent to look after you and train you, like a mentor. He thinks it's time you learn self-defense."He says

I look him in the eyes and see a kind, caring person being displayed in the eye-lights, much like my father's.

"Ooo! Alright!"I say

"Would you like to start?"He asks

"Yes!"I reply excitedly

He sheaths the sword away.

"Let's start with hand to hand combat. Show me what ya got! Come on, you got this!"He says charging at me

I clench my fists and feel excited. I raise them up.

"Yes sir!"I tell him

We throw some punches, he dodges, I dodge. It soon becomes  clear that punches won't get anywhere with him. I swoop down, kicking him clean off his feet. I get up and step on him.

"Papa taught me a few things."I say, holding him down

"I see. Come here you little rascal!"He says, pulling me down

I smile.

He hugs me and chuckles happily. 

His laugh....sounds like Papa's. 

Sweet and friendly.

"Can you tell me what my papa left to do?"I ask

"I'm sorry. He swore me to secrecy. But he's coming back soon."He tells me

"Alright."I say

"Who has been watching over you?"He asks

"Supposedly Mr. Killer, Papa's boyfriend, but he's become so busy or at least he says he is. He is always running errands or sleeping in. He hardly talks or spends time with me besides denying me the ability to do stuff like see my friends or family. It's mostly Fallacy, Encre and Jasper who actually care for me."I say

"I see....Have they told you anything?"He asks

"No, but they've given me a lot of support."I say

"That reminds me. He sent me with a gift for you."He says

"Really?"I ask

He reaches into a satchel I didn't notice before. 

"Ghastly!"I hear a voice yell

Then, before he could take the gift out and give it to me, I feel a hand grab me and yank me from him. I find Killer blocking me from him, holding a knife already.

"Stay behind me, Ghastly."Killer tells me

"Ah, you must be Killer. Nice to meet ya."Étoile says, getting up, dusting snow off of him and smiling

"Stay back you! You aren't hurting him!"Killer snaps

"I wouldn't think of it. I am not the enemy here anyway."He says

Sure seems like it from where I am! You holding him to you on the ground!"Killer snaps

"Mr. Killer, stop! Please! He isn't the enemy! He's my new mentor! Papa sent him!"I tell him

"He what? This guy is your mentor? From Nightmare?! You gotta be kidding me!"Killer says

"Hey, he seems nice. He's like Papa and has stuck around longer than you ever have lately."I tell him, coming back over to Étoile

I bow to him.

"So you're okay with getting trained by me?"He asks

"Mhm."I tell him

"Alright, well I have a letter for you. That's the gift."He says, handing me a letter

I unfold it and gaze at it. It's in Papa's handwriting, definitely him.

Dear Ghastly,

Hey kiddo! How are you? I hope you are well including everyone. I am so sorry I left but things had to get done. It was for the best but I'm coming back now. In the meantime, I sent one of my newest companions to train you. I trust that he will train you well. I do not want to risk you getting into trouble without me to help you. Stay safe and do not worry. I will be home soon. Just picture it, I'll read your favorite bedtime story or anything you wish when I come for you. See ya!

Sincerely with many hugs,

Papa"

I smile. I look at Étoile and beam at him with joy. I tuck the letter away and hug him.

"Thank you!"I say

He pats my head.

"Anytime."He says

Killer pulls me back again. He grabs Étoile's wrists.

"Why does he trust you to train his son more than me?"He asks

"I dunno, maybe because he considered you being too busy and didn't want to overwork you. He wanted someone around and he seems correct. Ghastly says that you've been so busy but yet you isolate him. He needs to be free. He needs to learn defense. And I'm here to teach him. You do as you wish, I don't care. If you wanted to train him, maybe you should've been doing that before I got here and we could've scheduled something. You snooze, you lose."Étoile says

"If he gets put in harms way-"Killer begins

"He won't. I'll make sure of it. Come on, this is NIGHTMARE's son we're protecting. I'd be dust before even a scratch is put on him. Surely you of all people know what it's like to serve him. Now, how about you start cooperating. I'm your friend here, not the enemy."Étoile cuts him off

Killer is silent.

"Killer? Anything?"Étoile says

No response.

"Why don't you come inside?"I ask

"I would like that, if someone let me go."Étoile says

"That auora, no...can't be...."Killer mutters

"Mind letting me go? It's getting dark out and that is when bad things go down."Étoile says

"Who even are you?"Killer asks

"The name's Étoile. Nice to meet you. Now, if you don't mind, I'm gonna go."He says, tearing free from Killer

I take his hand.

"See you inside, Mr. Killer!"I say

We go in and Encre notices Étoile immediately.

"Bonjour, Monsieur. Comment allez-vous?"He asks Encre

(*Hello, sir. How do you do?)

Encre's eyes lit up.

"Oh! Bonjour, monsieur! I am good! SO good to see you again!"Encre says

"You know him?"I ask

"Of course! He and I are good friends."Encre says, winking at him

"Ah, yes. Sure are."He tells me

"Well then did you know he's gonna be my mentor, training me?"I ask

"I would expect nothing less."Encre says

Étoile extends his hand and Encre shakes it, but pauses.

"Oh dear! How far have you traveled? You're freezing! Here, let me warm you up!"Encre says, tugging Étoile away

A few minutes later, Étoile is sitting by a burning fireplace, wrapped in a blanket with a warm cloth on his head.

 I sit beside him and share my food with him.

"You all are just what your father described to me."He says

"Is that good?"I ask

"Yes, he couldn't have had a better friend and family circle."He tells me

I smile.

"Ya, we're all lucky to have Papa."I say

"And he is glad to have all of you."He says

Fallacy comes over and hugs him.

"Gave us quite the scare there buddy!"Fallacy says

"About being chilly?"I ask

He looks at me, then at him.

"We'll discuss this later."Fallacy says, walking away

I shrug it off.

Weeks pass and I keep training with Étoile. He is so nice to me and makes me feel safe. He protects me and does so many favors for me. Like, he does the things Killer never allows. He lets me go out to play, run errands with him, and visit the others when we're not training. Everyone met him and quickly grow fond of him. Uncle Dream missed me so much apparently and thanks Étoile for bringing him.

"I haven't seen him in weeks! It must be a full moon or something for this miracle to happen!"He says, hugging me

E!Pap even added Étoile to his book. But, unfortunately, there is some bad with all the good.

Étoile seems to have amnesia. He will forget things from time to time. Certain memories. Or he will jump at the slightest of sounds, getting flashbacks to odd events that he can't describe when he calms down. And, to no surprise, Killer doesn't seem very fond of Étoile like everyone else is. He stays a room away from him, always shooting him glares or mouthing things to himself. He tries to keep me away from Étoile but he gets reminded of Papa and backs off, plus I will tell him to stop. These occurrances seem to bring Étoile down. He always is upset when these things happen and his mood gets ruined for the rest of the day. He gets put at unease around Killer. I hope Papa gets home soon, maybe he could defuse this tension. No, I know he can. He's Papa.

There are also more private talks that Killer is dragging Étoile into. I can overhear them every time, no matter where they go or how many doors are shut. I once peeked through a crack in the door and find Killer arguing with Étoile. Étoile seems like he wants to say something, but doesn't. He knows something. But he must've been sworn to secrecy about it or is uncertain due to his scrambled memories. 

"Do you even care for him? Will you be there for them?"Killer asks in the argument

"Of course I do! I've been around and spending time with him! I've put every bit of myself into every activity with him! Unlike you, mister dissapearances! And don't get on my case about being there for them! Oh just go back to Color already! We both know that's what you're really doing!"Étoile suddenly snaps, cracking from the statement

"Why you little-"Killer growls, picking up his knife

I kick the door open and bolt in.

"Mr. Killer! Stop now! That's enough!"I shout

"Stay out of this, kid."Killer says

"No! You are not hurting him! You've crossed a line! I will not stay out of it and let you take your anger out on him! Ever since Papa left, you've been a shadow, a figure in the background! At least he's willing to be with me in the foreground! So don't you dare use that knife on him or I will tell Papa! I've had enough of you trying to cut me off from everything and pushing those who want to help out!"I snap

"But-!"Killer begins

"He is my mentor! For crying out loud, how much more do you want from a person to show they care? He's showing me how to freaking protect myself! You both have the same goal so I have no clue why you won't just let him! I'm so tired of it! Please, Mr. Killer, you gotta let me let others in. You gotta let others in. Just because Papa left, who isn't even dead, doesn't mean you leave everyone!"I say

I look at Étoile. He smiles at me with such a loving gaze. It tells me without words being said that he's thanking me. And he's proud of me for speaking my mind.

"Let's go train or something, Étoile."I say

He nods and we head outside. We train for what felt like hours but I don't mind. That meant some space from Killer. 

"You're doing great!"Étoile says

"Thanks!"I say

"I wanna try something new, do you mind?"He asks

"No, go on ahead."I reply

He picks me up and tosses me into a tree.

"Show me your hiding skills!"He says

I run and climb and make sure I'm out of sight. I see many places to hide, but these are too obvious. I find a hidden one and make the best of it. I wait and wait and wait to be found. But he never came. I hear movement below though. I peek out and see Étoile getting attacked by Killer. Étoile is knocked to the ground roughly and Killer has his knife out. 

No! He is not gonna hurt my mentor! He reminds me of Papa! Which is all I have right now! 

I focus and try to use what I learned. But I've only learned hand to hand combat, what can I do? Then I remember one of the rules Étoile taught me, use advantages and disarm your enemy. I am well hidden in the tree and have the high ground. He only has a knife, I have other abilities. But I haven't used one in so long. Now's the time to use it, I know it. I summon my tentacle and swing it at Killer, knocking the knife out of his hand, then quickly unsummon it before he could figure out where it came from.

 He realized he wasn't alone though and returned to the house.

"Étoile? May I come down now? Can I come out of hiding?"I ask

"S-Sure...."Étoile says

I come down and see how wounded he is. I extend my hand and help him up. It starts to rain and he summons an umbrella. He opens it and covers us with it.

"Are you okay?"I ask

"Y-Yeah....He really doesn't like me being with ya, huh?"He says

"I am so sorry about him. He's been so distant and hostile ever since Papa left."I say

"Were you the one who hit the knife away with a tentacle?"He asks

"Yep."I say

"Good strategy. Guess I should start teaching you with that too, huh?"He tells me

"Don't tell me we're still training. You need to rest."I say

"How about we go to your uncle's? Seems like Killer has to blow off steam."He says

I nod and that's what we do. I have a good mentor. His name is Étoile. He is so nice and very good. I just wish Killer could see that. I wish Papa would come back.

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And that's the first chapter! More is to come! Hope this is enjoyable like the first one!