A LIL PLUSH BEAR.

 1774, NOVEMBER 28th, MONDAY12:41 pm.

Noche fell down the stairs and crashed on the floor below. She found herself in a closet of sorts full of jackets and clothes, with stairs leading to an attic above her. There was only one door out and it was gigantic. She couldn't reach the handle even when she stood on her tip toes.

With a mighty jump, she grabbed the doorknob and it creaked open. Before her was what appeared to be a dark laundry room. She closed the door behind her and the loud click of the latch broke the dead silence. The room was dark and cold; she could feel tears welling up in her eyes.

Something was wrong, she scanned about and found a mirror laying against the wall. She was in kid form – just like baby Noche. Even her clothes had changed from the black jacket to the red and white stripped shirt.

"I'm a child? How? When?" She sniffled and wiped at her eyes. "Stupid dream place. I'm not that weak... or afraid."

A buzzer sounded behind Noche; she turned and attempted to summon her wooden oar, but it did not appear in her hand. She got into a defensive stance and scanned for the source of the noise. It was a drying machine situated next to a still-running washer. There was movement near the glass panel situated in front of her.

Something thumped against the window over and over again. Cautiously, Noche approached and popped open the lid. Clothes tumbled out onto the ground and landing atop it all was a stuffed bear.

"Baxter?"

The plush toy animated and stood on two legs. It appeared just like her friend and guardian Baxter, the bear-humanoid who guarded the entrance to DeathTech's base. It had button eyes and a fabric helmet but otherwise appeared identical. The only other major difference was the fact it was half of Noche's current size.

"Little girl, are you lost?'

Noche pointed to herself.

"Yes, you silly."

"I'm not a little girl," she pouted.

"You look like one."

"Its this dream world," Noche crossed her arms and stamped her foot. "It keeps messing with me."

The plushy chuckled. "Everyone is secretly a child at heart."

Noche's eyes started to water as she scowled.

"Now, now. No need to get upset," he said. "I want to help. What's your name?"

"Noche."

"Well Noche, I'm Baxy. Now tell me what's wrong."

"I'm searching for someone, but she keeps running away," she sniffled. "And there's this monster, Creeps, chasing me... I think it killed me and... and."

Tears started to stream down her face and she wiped at them with tiny fists.

"And Jack is... Jack is..."

The plush copy of Baxter walked up to the blonde child and wrapped her in a tight hug.

"I couldn't save him," she cried. "I couldn't save anyone. All I do is hurt people. I want to be better but I don't know how."

"Shhh, shhh, there there Noche. It's alright," Baxy said. "How about I help you find this person you're looking for?"

"Y-You will?"

"I will."

The plush toy paused as a wave of cold and darkness filled the room. It passed as quickly as it came.

"We'll have to hurry. Your monster is here looking for you."

"Creeps is here!" Noche shouted in hushed tones.

"It is. I know its scary, but we need to sneak you out of here."

Noche squeezed tighter onto the plush toy.

"You will be fine if we can get you to the front door," Baxy said. "You'll have to be brave, alright?"

She nodded and let go of the stuffed animal.

"Let's go," he said.

The two approached the door out and despite Noche being too short to reach the handle, Baxy was able to when picked up. With a loud creak, it opened to a new hallway that appeared to be the upstairs balcony of a two-story house. However, with her current size, it felt more like a mansion.

Noche wasn't normally afraid of heights, but in her child form, the stairs appeared more like an endless drop into the abyss. The banister railings with the large gaps in rails didn't seem sufficient to prevent her from an accidental tumble to her demise.

"It's not as far as it seems," Baxy said. "A drop of water looks like an ocean to the microscopic."

With a gulp, Noche approached the first step and lowered herself down. Due to it being a third of her size, she had to slide her body over the ledge. The wooden plank squeaked as she adjusted her weight onto her foot.

Baxy, on the other hand, clambered less gracefully and fell down two steps. It stood back up and helped the blonde as she slid down the next obstacle. By the time they had reached the bottom, it had been the equivalent of a mountain climb for her.

The living room was almost pitch black and the windows outside were even darker. Noche had to muster every ounce of willpower in her minuscule frame to fight back against the army of ants welling in her stomach. Her nerves were on a knife's edge in this almost familiar place.

It was her inner battle that distracted her to the point that she bumped into a table containing a house plant. It tumbled and she darted to stop it from falling. Luckily she caught it at the last moment, but she broke a branch in the process.

It leaked blood.

Instead of wood, the contents of the branch were blood and muscle tissue. Noche bit back a yelp as red droplets splattered onto her hand. She placed the pot down quickly, but gently, and backed away. Her heart beat like a drum as the ants skittered about inside her. Then something moved in the darkness.

It came from the kitchen — a shape in the black. It was hunched over a young girl. One the same age as Noche's current form. There was a sickening crunch as bones snapped. A loud slurping of wet meat being torn. The figure stopped moving.

"Noche, you need to run," Baxy whispered. "I'll hold it off."

"N-No, I'm tired of everyone I meet sacrificing themselves," she stuttered. "I don't want to be alone."

"I'm sorry. You have to learn to let go," he said. "You have to accept they're gone."

"I can't. My mom, my dad, Jack," tears welled in her eyes. "I don't want to learn how to say goodbye."

Creeps stood and turned towards the duo. Baxy interposed himself between Noche and her worst fear. The floor and walls began to crumble into sand as the monster approached.

"Run!"

The blonde hesitated, but when faced with that desert she had no choice. Noche turned and ran towards the front door. Fabric ripped behind her and stuffing flew past her — tears streamed down her face as she flew.

She jumped, her fingers latched onto the knob, the door opened as she fell. Light flooded the living room as she landed on her ass. She turned to face Baxy and Creeps, but both were gone. She sat alone in a small patch of illumination while surrounded by the darkness of the house.

"Noche!"

She turned to a familiar figure. A silhouetted man with a square face, shiny belt buckle, and a watch on his left wrist.

"Get in the car."

In a trance, she hung her head and did as she was told. Scrambling into the passenger side seat and buckling her belt before the father figure got in and sped off.