A whisper away from the truth was it truly all a dream?...
Haru blinked a few times smiling widely at the little boy who had hugged him while he was handing out free candy to others, drooling slightly on his apron but he simply laughed as he patted him on the head.
The child happy with his reaction raced back to his mother with a cheerful laugh and expression composed all over his face making his heart awestruck with the peaceful atmosphere. Lights were strung down from buildings and poles as the tapping feet could be heard scurrying everywhere.
Joyful laughs and cheers could be noticed toning into the crowds who had gathered around shops and stands, scents of candy, foods, and other things lingering around.
This is heaven, he thought, eyes flickered with a sparkling glint of pure excitement as he headed back in to refill the candy basket he had been using. Buck on the other hand looked quite how should he put it? Quite stressed...
His eyes were squinted making them look sharp to the touch as he nabbed everyone's cash in an instant as if it were in his nature. He seemed approachable but at the same time threatening, causing Haru to snicker to himself as he headed over to help.
"Are you alright?" He questioned the cheetah shifter who was swiftly bagging things, though he supposed they were built for speed rubbing the back of his head for the dumb analogy.
"Just find squirt, we can close up in an hour at this rate! Just in time for the show." He'd yell back to him not bothering to break concentration, it was so packed they were forced to yell over the crowd of ongoing traffic which engulfed the small store.
Hearing this Haru slowly nodded before walking towards the storage room to stock the shelf which was being taken up by the dozen.
By the end of his last box which was taken from his hands before he even got a chance to stock it, Buck had announced the store's closed ushering people to leave. Allowing Haru to head to his room to change Kaito and himself before waiting in front for Buck to finish up.
As they got into the old rickety cab, he'd noticed it was nearly covered head to toe in copper. Making him unable to help, but stare out the window as the beaming lights and crowds of people slowly became more and more diminutive as they were engulfed by the dim of the woods.
"I thought the show was in town," he questioned turning back to Buck who was entertaining Kaito. "Ah, I forgot you were new to this... Space, you see there are four quadrants which house the people."
"The one you were in was Mirfield as said before. The other four are Rahyrst, Hamor one of the largest cities, Keld and Talgel. Think of it like a starfish, each limb is a town or city and in the middle is Dagary, where the king lays though only the rich stay near the kingdom."
"So, everyone is going to Dagary for the festival?" Haru questioned his eyes now staring in wonder as he held Kaito in a hug."
"Yes, I know it's a bit old-fashioned in our town but the other three are far more modern. Mirfield is the town of the poor you see, which is one reason the Humans First is outraged by the display of our king..."
He rubbed the back of his neck looking out of the window as they neared a large gate. "Sorry for asking," he'd tap him offering a loli pop he had stashed in his pocket. Buck turned taking the loli with a weak smile as they parked.
Haru looked around flabbergasted by the scene of people walking around cheering, marching, and conversing as they passed by, the sweet aroma of fast food and other things tingled his nose as he walked. He'd look up to see the sizeable castle which seemed far away but still quite large making him gulp slightly.
"We have an hour to spare so how about we walk around till then kid?" Buck questioned now staring at this gawking short boy who looked like a child in a candy store.
He'd nod as they began walking stop in between stalls to buy food. Buck came to a halt once he saw the game stalls, ushering them both over to a dice table as he paid the fee.
"You gamble kid?" A smirk spread across his face as Haru nodded, now looking slightly concerned as the dealer passed out the cards.
"How much would you like to be betting sir," the dealer would question towards the shrimp tapping the table twice.
"I oh um, how much do you wanna bet?" He turned to Buck who had a smug look on his face as he placed down fifty staring at his cards peacefully. Understanding this he followed with the little money he had left.
"This is a game of poker though we could also play poker dice, think of it as a game of chicken with lies, call."
He'd look at his cards allowing his eyes to squint as he looked up and down before placing down ten eyebrows furrowed. "Raise."
"Oh, playing on the offensive. Raise twenty." He had to admit for a squirt he looked quite confident though he kept composed as he placed down the cash.
The dealer would place down a queen, two aces, a nine diamond, and a jester. "Shall we do full house now?" She motioned towards them with a slow flick of her wrist as they both nodded. Placing their cards down Buck had two nine hearts while he had a queen and an ace making him wince as she moved the money towards him.
"I want a rematch," he'd slam his hands on the table watching him as he counted his winnings. "Fine by me sir." Haru smiled at the defeated man who had his head slumped down.
"How did you win every time I even considered cheating at his point," he looked up at him. "You stick your tail up when you have a bad hand and swish it when you have a good one. Bad move on your part," he'd smile.
"You little.."
"How much time do we have left?" He'd stare as Buck got up dusting off his clothes. "Forty minutes." "I'm gonna go walk around do you mind taking care of Kaito for a tiny bit," he raised her. She had a mouth full of ice cream making him awe a little as he reluctantly agreed to the matter with a scornful face.
"Come on Kaito let's get away from you're mean papa. Remind me to never gamble against you again and meet back here in twenty minutes," he chuckled cradling her watching as Haru waved his hand while walking away.
The noise of people yelling made his ears ring as he walked by the crowds of ongoing people, making his way inside the large dark mansion door he had seen across the dice table. Sounds of others screaming and running echoed from the halls.
Haru took a deep breath as he walked forward looking around the lifeless passageways. A rotting smell snuck up on him making his noise scrunch up, a crunch under his foot made him walk a little faster as he noticed fragments of a rat skull.
He began to hammer away on a limp body, blood-spattered off the counter where it lay. He didn't even seem to notice as he began to cut open her stomach taking her organs out in a ripping motion until they reached her heart.
They looked up at Haru offering the heart sending a shiver down his spine as he noticed live maggots gushing out of it in an attempt to escape. Forcing his body into flight mode he stumbled backward before full sprint from him.
Loud footsteps followed suit, the screech of metal cutting something hard made him shudder as he ran faster further pushing himself. His mouth became like sand gasping for air as he neared the last step of the stairs running into something hard with a thud.
Haru stopped in one swift motion as large arms wrapped themselves around him giving a gentle tug, pulling him closer to their waist. His breath would become faint but fast-paced. Beginning the start of a panic attack he'd look up to see his captor.
"Not much for haunted houses huh?" He gulped as he stared at the man, he had a medium athletic build which he could tell from the structure of his grasp.
The guy's eyes were covered by pitch-black straight fluffy hair which poked out of his hoodie though. He didn't have a beard but instead four strands on his chin, he'd look to the side of him and noticed his thin fluffed tail swaying.
The thought of this guy made his heart drop as he looked back down noticing he was at the man's waist. The fact this dude looked like some kid rather than a bloody murder made him back away only to be stopped by those two arms.
"For you're information I was being chased! I'm sorry for bumping into you but can you please let go," his voice attempted to sound firm but it cracked simply making the guy chuckle as he reluctantly let go.
"Sorry, d o n g s a e n g did I upset you? You seemed to be panicking before but you look alright now." (D o n g s a e n g: "younger sibling" Is used to call: A younger male or female sibling or any friend who's younger than you (as a female/male)
"This guy.." He looked around for a moment then back down the stairs, the clown was watching him from the corner before retreating forcing a shiver down his spine. "I'm alright but, can you help me out of here?.."