Friends do help though. When times are tough and you can't trust anyone else, you have each other. You share what you know, which may be very little, but even those slivers make you sharper than the people around you. You chat about your fears awhile, grateful to not be alone, and feel the cool balm of relief once you confess them. You don't have to carry this alone.
There is something else. Maybe less important, because it's only ever dreams, and they don't make much sense to you even while you're sleeping, and they're half gone when you're awake. Why bother bringing them up at all?
Jen dreams about a man. A lumberjack, from the way back in the day times, when Derry was a logging town proper. He got awful mad when his friends were killed by the big money men in town — his friends only wanted fair shares. Better conditions. Logging was rough work. But they had them killed, and the lumberjack retreated into the woods.
Then one day he comes back. He goes into the bar, which is packed to the gills, and brings his axe to the back table where the rich men are playing cards. He hacks them up on the spot. Everyone else keeps drinking their beer and chatting away. They let the lumberjack kill them and they don't notice it's happening. All the while, a few bars away, there's a clown juggling, doing cartwheels, playing tricks.
Andy dreams about a different bar. This one's a bit out of the way and yet it's hopping. The floor is packed down dirt and the construction is ramshackle but the music and the food are hot. It's a bar made by and for black folks, no doubt about it, but white folks have come to join the fun too, and they all dance with crazy spins and dips as the band plays themselves into a sweat. Fun stuff.
Until a gang in white hoods come along. They set the bar on fire, and people are screaming. Burning up. Some pitch out of the windows in time, but something goes wrong with the door, and a whole pack of people pile up behind it in a panic, clawing to get out and going nowhere as the flames take them. The crazy thing is, at one point there's a massive bird. A bird with balloons tied to its wings. It floats down and picks up a man as he runs away from the carnage, and carries him off.
Del dreams about a bank robbing gang, back in the Depression days. They pull into town while low on supplies, incognito-like. They go up to the gun store and ask for a whole lot of bullets. The proprietor says, sure, I can get you a whole lot of bullets. Come back tomorrow.
They come around the next day, and damn near the whole town is there, armed to the teeth. Everyone fires on them, shoots them until their bodies are no better than perforated meat. Even the girls. Vigilante justice at its peak. Sometimes he thinks he sees a clown in there shooting too. Leaning too far out of a window, or hiding behind a car, casting no shadow as he helps blast them to high hell.
It makes sense though, in a way. You're scared, so you're having fucked up dreams. You saw a clown, now you're seeing clowns.
(Mike was writing a book)
It doesn't matter.
You kick around for awhile, even if it's hard to lighten the mood. You agree to help Del pick up Bax from his friend's birthday party. They could have cancelled it, but everyone had agreed that maybe a little levity was needed, and most of the kids Bax's age were young enough not to know Yves themselves. Derry wasn't a huge city, but it wasn't a small town either. Not everybody knew everybody.
When you get there, you don't find Bax. The party's over and everyone has left or is leaving, but no one seems to know where he is.
You can check some of the usual spots? Maybe split up? There's the Aladdin theatre, there's good shows on, maybe he wandered over there with a pal? Or City Centre, with the center park and the Paul Bunyan statue and delightful stores around? Or maybe grassy Bassey Park, where kids of all ages like to play?
He can't have gone far. He's not stupid. He can't have.]
[ he doesn't want to scare del. that's the important part. he can't panic, because it will scare del, and someone has to stay calm. it's harder and harder to stay calm at all, at any time, when his dreams are filled with fire and screams. ]
We should split. See if we can't cover more ground, yeah?
[ andy will lace his shoes tighter, and run off in the direction of whatever is furthest away. Maybe the Bassey Park. He's the tallest, he's got the longest legs, so he can get there the quickest. Turn around and catch up with the others if Bax isn't there. ]
[Andy chooses Bassey Park. It's a decent day out. Not the best, some overcast up high, but it makes sense for kids to want to play outside.
He doesn't find Bax, but he does find three other kids: Beverly, Ben, and Stanley. They're holding ice creams and they were in deep conversation, but noticing the look on Andy's face they approach, apprehensive.]
Hey, Andy! What's wrong, kid? [Beverly ventures. Ben looks worried behind her, sensing something deeper in the other boy's expression than a lost kite or a dropped dollar bill. Stanley, who always looks like a little adult in his fully buttoned shirt and trimly tied shoes, frowns a polite frown, but there's a sharp look to his eyes that says he's following Ben's train of thought.
[ andy has to pause to catch his breath because he bolted the entire way here, heaving like a bellows and fighting the stitch in his side. reaching down to try and fix the part of trainers where the sole has started to come loose.
he hates the looks. the way they already seem to know. the pity. the fear. he thinks about a great bird, swooping down to pluck someone off the face of the earth and fly off. ]
... Have you seen Bax?
[ it feels sickening to say it. like a confession of sin. ]
Stanley speaks up.] That's Del's little brother, right? The really tall kid, from third grade? No, we haven't seen him. But...
[The three look between each other. Something sharp and alert passes between them. Then they look to Andy, hesitating. It's as if all four kids are too wary to speak a shared truth aloud.
It's Ben who steps forward.]
But we'll look for him. You never know...Anything could have happened. So we'll look. If he's not here then we'll check the playground by the school, maybe the library?
[The other two nod. Beverly balls her hands into fists and Stanley—
(Please tell them)
Stanley gives Andy a nod.]
And don't tell the police yet. Or any grown ups, for that matter. Not until we're sure. They might not be able to do anything.
[Beverly almost opens her mouth. Then she shuts it, and instead touches Andy's arm softly.]
We better hurry. If we find him, we'll keep him at the library. All right?
[All three nod, and set off on their mission. Perhaps nothing needs to be said at all. They pitch their ice creams into the trash on the way, and set off at a sprint.]
[she doesn't really believe that, though. kids around here don't seem to go missing for benign reasons, not ever. but she will try to push those thoughts away.
she will head to the theater. that seems maybe the least likely place he'd go; surely he wouldn't have wandered off, knowing how much del worries him. but at least they'll be able to say they checked, know for sure. so she'll run there, ask to be let in just to look around.]
[She goes to the theatre. It's good timing too, the show hasn't started yet, and there's two familiar faces out front — albeit ones she hasn't talked to since school let out. Richie Tozier and Eddie Kaspbrak look up and wave when they see her coming. The former perks up and pops to his feet with a bright grin, as he always does when he sees her, the latter catches better sight of her expression and his face pinches.]
Wot's all this then, wot's all this? Wot 'ave we got 'ere, are you— [Richie starts in a terrible English accent, but Eddie slaps a hand over his mouth.]
Shut up, Richie. Hey, Jen, wassamatter? [He releases his pal, who clues into the mood for once and pushes his glasses back into place.] You look like you've seen a ghost.
[she definitely hesitates. she doesn't know these kids - only vaguely, from that one day of playing, from a few interactions, probably most of them being unpleasant. if richie is happy to see her that seems like a personal problem on his part. the other children in this town don't feel quite as oblivious as everyone else, seem to take the threats seriously at least, but that doesn't mean they're all trustworthy.
on the other hand, maybe she does know them...? or maybe it feels like she does...?
she does tell them.]
We can't find Del's little brother. Have you seen him?
[Whatever personal problems Richie may or may not have are beside the point. He's at attention now. For serious, once she mentions the missing boy.]
Oh shit. Uh. [He looks to Eddie, who meets his eyes with a slight panic. Richie looks back to Jen, suddenly a live-wire.] One sec!
[He darts into the theatre, past the slacking usher who is chatting up the pretty teenage ticket clerk. Eddie shakes his head in the meanwhile.]
The show doesn't start for another twenty minutes, there's barely anyone in there. We were just waiting around because we're waiting on a few extra guys. It's Bax, right? Tall kid?
[Richie reappears in a clumsy flash of knees and elbows, gasping.] It's just that fuck Peter Gordon and his girlfriend in there. No kids. Shit, you think something happened to him?
[Eddie pulls out his aspirator and gives himself a whiff, looking pale already.] Don't fucking panic! We'll take a look around downtown. All right Jen? And if we find him we'll march him up to the diner and we'll order him a grilled cheese, and we'll make him sit there until his brother can come give him shit. If not...
[Richie's rarely looked so serious.]
Then we'll find you. And we'll keep looking after that, until the little joker turns up. Jeeeee-sus Christ. [He looks to her, hesitating.] Just...don't go near the water while you're looking. Okay? Kids can slip and stuff. Drains too.
[He's trying to sound casual, but there's a steely undercurrent to it. A grave warning.]
[she hears that. but also, she famously cannot swim, so even in a 1950s AU, she wouldn't be doing that anyway.]
It's Bax. And... I doubt he would have wandered off to see a movie. He wouldn't want to worry Del. So something bad might have happened.
[so she's not very surprised when they don't find him in there. she's not panicking, because she's choosing not to, but there's something very relieving in the way that they take her seriously, snap to attention, immediately have plans in motion. she'll just nod along.]
I'll look for you at the diner later, just to be sure. I won't go near the water. [she takes a deep breath, thinking about the grave way they're talking. they know.] ...Thank you for helping.
[she feels a little better, knowing they have the others looking after bax, even though she does not watch movies and does not know what richie is going for here.
she will go back to find the others, then, hoping maybe they found him already.]
[ jen's words are nice but they're a lie. he knows they don't believe it. and it doesn't matter whether andy panics or not because del already is. he always is. ]
Yeah.
[ is the only sound he manages to get out, his mouth dry like sawdust. he clenches his fists and just... runs, as fast as he can with his short strides.
fuck fuck fuck. he wants to beat up that kid's parents for letting any of these kids out of their sight. they knew what happened to yves and the other kids, they knew there was a threat lurking out there. it just further proves what jen had said, what they'd all already known. that the grown-ups here don't give a shit about them and they've got to fend for themselves in this horrible world because no one else is going to.
he wonders if there'd been a clown at that party. he really doesn't want to wonder that.
he races off toward city centre, to the park and the paul bunyan statue they used to climb on, and he tries to pretend that the blur to his vision is just because he's so damn fast, not because his eyes are welling up in panic and guilt, because he already knew they couldn't trust these shitty adults, so why the hell did he just leave his brother in their care and expect things to be okay? ]
[It's hard to climb on more than Paul's boots, being that the statue's twenty feet high on a six foot pedestal, but kids do it all the time anyway. Can't keep them off, really, and that includes Bax. Sometimes kids play apple jacks on the square around him, sometimes they read comics or eat sweets in his shade.
It doesn't seem to be the case today. The only kids there are one he knows from school — Bill Denbrough, a friends of Ben and Beverly's — and Mike Hanlon, who he knows from plain sight. Even if he attended the same piddling school as Yves, there was no flying under the radar when you were the only black kid in town.
They're walking their bikes down the lane, but both slow when they catch sight of Del's face.]
Whoa, whoa, where's the fire? [Mike asks, holding up a peaceable hand to slow Del's rush.]
Del, w-w-what's w-wrong? [Bill's stutter gets in his way all the time, but he stands steadier than most kids. Meets Del's eyes with a surety that makes you feel seen.
He'd know this panic, after all. His brother was the first to die.
[ he comes to a stop, reluctantly, and struggles to catch his breath. ]
It's...
[ he looks at bill and the words catch in his throat. running into him feels like it's an omen, almost, like he's looking in a mirror at who he's about to become, who he'd give anything not to be. ]
Bax is— I'm lookin' for him. [ he can't bring himself to say he's missing, even though it's written all over his face. ] Y-you haven't seen him, have you?
[What an omen, indeed. At least it's an empathetic one. His eyes go steely at once, and he casts a look around them. Gauging the situation. Mike's face falls, though he tries his best to hide it.]
Oh, fudge... [Mike says faintly.] Do you think he could be in town, or outside?
...C-c-ould've gone anywhere. You up to ch-check N-Neibolt Street? K-K-Kid could have g-gone to s-s-see the train t-tracks.
[Mike looks unsettled, but he nods all right.] And if we find him, we'll bring him back up here. To the soda shop, they're open late, there's always kids in there.
[Both of them look back to Del, and Bill's eyes flick between the other boy's. Bill's tall for his age while Del may be quite short, but somehow locking eyes now feels like an even match. For better or for worse. Deciding something very serious, he gives only one piece of advice. It doesn't make much sense.]
I-if you s-see something strange out there, you g-g-gotta run, or you g-g-gotta use y-your imagination. [His jaw sets and his shoulders square.] Th-that's the only w-w-way kids can g-g-get out of a mess.
[ use your imagination? he's not even sure what that means in this context, but he's also afraid to ask, because that means acknowledging the something strange that he desperately wants to pretend none of them will encounter.
[Understandable. It's so hard to brush up against, much less come out and name. Bill and Mike nod and bid Del goodbye, mounting their bikes and sailing away.
The three of your regroup soon after. Individually, you've had no luck, but once you're together you get a lead. Another kid says he saw Bax running down into the Barrens. A young girl says she saw him near the sewer pipes, while taking a walk on the overpass with her big sister.
No one's seen him after that.
With no other choice, the three of you race down into the green, down near the stink of the Kenduskeag river, where the city sewage dilutes and sails out to parts unknown. It's a hard run, even for the most active kids, and you are panting and wheezing by the time you come to one of those foreboding metal mushrooms, jutting up from packed earth and entangled in weeds. One already had the massive lid hauled off, leaning against the side. It would take about four or five kids to both unscrew and lift it.
There's an abandoned sneaker in front of it, just Bax's size.]
[ he doesn't understand. why the fuck would bax have come here? he saw that monster in the pipes before too, he knows about the kids who've disappeared, it's a fucking sewer on top of everything else. he knows nothing good can possibly come out of playing somewhere like this, so why...
as winded as he is, the moment he convinces his weak limbs to unfreeze, he goes dashing for the sewer pipe.
he doesn't look too hard at the sneaker because he doesn't want to recognize it. ]
I met Richie and Eddie, they said to stay away from the water.
[she says this grimly when they see the sneaker, because it's not really a warning. she knows they can't ignore finding bax's sneaker. they aren't going to go back to the diner and wait. she just feels she should say it now, so they're all aware.]
The three scale the ladder, one at a time, into musky, repugnant stink. The grey water is up to their knees and the squish under foot is a promise of worse unseen below, should they happen to stumble. Ahead there's a broad, dark pipe, large enough for a man to crouch and walk. Kids can do it standing, and so you do.
It's forbiddingly dark down here. Noises echo. No light. Maybe one of you has a match? Maybe you trace a hand along the wall to find your way. It may not do you much good. As the warnings say, the Derry sewage system is a maze, and people do get lost.
Not the sort of thing you want to think about, but it's impossible not to.
Rats squeak, skitter. Probably crawling on higher piles of waste along the walls. There's running water somewhere distant, and then somewhere quite close. How can you know? It's hard to see.
Easy to imagine, isn't it? Easy to imagine anything down here. Bill said to use your imaginations, but it's easy enough for an imagination to use you. This is a place for nightmares. Not little kids.
Or maybe today is an exception. There's a muffled sound. An echo from somewhere much further down.
On your next step there's a drop off, and you fall three feet into a different pipe system. There's no dodging the muck now.
The sound rises again. You think it sounds like a sob.]
[ somewhere in the back of his mind del really appreciates that andy and jen came along with him despite every one of them knowing it was an awful fucking idea. it's very far in the back right now, though, and he doesn't say a word the whole time they push forward.
he hears that sound from below. he falls. he's disgusting. it's fine. then he hears it again. it's a horribly unnerving sound to hear, echoing down in these dark pipes, and it sends a shiver through him... but at the same time, it fills him with enough hope to keep pushing on with all his strength in its direction, the hope that maybe they're at least not too late. maybe he won't be the next bill. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
holyspirits) wrote2025-03-09 04:46 pm
CW: mentions of racism, hate crimes
Friends do help though. When times are tough and you can't trust anyone else, you have each other. You share what you know, which may be very little, but even those slivers make you sharper than the people around you. You chat about your fears awhile, grateful to not be alone, and feel the cool balm of relief once you confess them. You don't have to carry this alone.
There is something else. Maybe less important, because it's only ever dreams, and they don't make much sense to you even while you're sleeping, and they're half gone when you're awake. Why bother bringing them up at all?
Jen dreams about a man. A lumberjack, from the way back in the day times, when Derry was a logging town proper. He got awful mad when his friends were killed by the big money men in town — his friends only wanted fair shares. Better conditions. Logging was rough work. But they had them killed, and the lumberjack retreated into the woods.
Then one day he comes back. He goes into the bar, which is packed to the gills, and brings his axe to the back table where the rich men are playing cards. He hacks them up on the spot. Everyone else keeps drinking their beer and chatting away. They let the lumberjack kill them and they don't notice it's happening. All the while, a few bars away, there's a clown juggling, doing cartwheels, playing tricks.
Andy dreams about a different bar. This one's a bit out of the way and yet it's hopping. The floor is packed down dirt and the construction is ramshackle but the music and the food are hot. It's a bar made by and for black folks, no doubt about it, but white folks have come to join the fun too, and they all dance with crazy spins and dips as the band plays themselves into a sweat. Fun stuff.
Until a gang in white hoods come along. They set the bar on fire, and people are screaming. Burning up. Some pitch out of the windows in time, but something goes wrong with the door, and a whole pack of people pile up behind it in a panic, clawing to get out and going nowhere as the flames take them. The crazy thing is, at one point there's a massive bird. A bird with balloons tied to its wings. It floats down and picks up a man as he runs away from the carnage, and carries him off.
Del dreams about a bank robbing gang, back in the Depression days. They pull into town while low on supplies, incognito-like. They go up to the gun store and ask for a whole lot of bullets. The proprietor says, sure, I can get you a whole lot of bullets. Come back tomorrow.
They come around the next day, and damn near the whole town is there, armed to the teeth. Everyone fires on them, shoots them until their bodies are no better than perforated meat. Even the girls. Vigilante justice at its peak. Sometimes he thinks he sees a clown in there shooting too. Leaning too far out of a window, or hiding behind a car, casting no shadow as he helps blast them to high hell.
It makes sense though, in a way. You're scared, so you're having fucked up dreams. You saw a clown, now you're seeing clowns.
(Mike was writing a book)
It doesn't matter.
You kick around for awhile, even if it's hard to lighten the mood. You agree to help Del pick up Bax from his friend's birthday party. They could have cancelled it, but everyone had agreed that maybe a little levity was needed, and most of the kids Bax's age were young enough not to know Yves themselves. Derry wasn't a huge city, but it wasn't a small town either. Not everybody knew everybody.
When you get there, you don't find Bax. The party's over and everyone has left or is leaving, but no one seems to know where he is.
You can check some of the usual spots? Maybe split up? There's the Aladdin theatre, there's good shows on, maybe he wandered over there with a pal? Or City Centre, with the center park and the Paul Bunyan statue and delightful stores around? Or maybe grassy Bassey Park, where kids of all ages like to play?
He can't have gone far. He's not stupid. He can't have.]
no subject
We should split. See if we can't cover more ground, yeah?
[ andy will lace his shoes tighter, and run off in the direction of whatever is furthest away. Maybe the Bassey Park. He's the tallest, he's got the longest legs, so he can get there the quickest. Turn around and catch up with the others if Bax isn't there. ]
no subject
He doesn't find Bax, but he does find three other kids: Beverly, Ben, and Stanley. They're holding ice creams and they were in deep conversation, but noticing the look on Andy's face they approach, apprehensive.]
Hey, Andy! What's wrong, kid? [Beverly ventures. Ben looks worried behind her, sensing something deeper in the other boy's expression than a lost kite or a dropped dollar bill. Stanley, who always looks like a little adult in his fully buttoned shirt and trimly tied shoes, frowns a polite frown, but there's a sharp look to his eyes that says he's following Ben's train of thought.
Do you tell them about Bax?]
no subject
he hates the looks. the way they already seem to know. the pity. the fear. he thinks about a great bird, swooping down to pluck someone off the face of the earth and fly off. ]
... Have you seen Bax?
[ it feels sickening to say it. like a confession of sin. ]
no subject
Stanley speaks up.] That's Del's little brother, right? The really tall kid, from third grade? No, we haven't seen him. But...
[The three look between each other. Something sharp and alert passes between them. Then they look to Andy, hesitating. It's as if all four kids are too wary to speak a shared truth aloud.
It's Ben who steps forward.]
But we'll look for him. You never know...Anything could have happened. So we'll look. If he's not here then we'll check the playground by the school, maybe the library?
[The other two nod. Beverly balls her hands into fists and Stanley—
(Please tell them)
Stanley gives Andy a nod.]
And don't tell the police yet. Or any grown ups, for that matter. Not until we're sure. They might not be able to do anything.
no subject
I wasn't going to.
[ the police never do anything for anyone. grown ups never do anything for any of them. ]
... Hey, have you--
[ No. Better not to mention it. The rest of it. ]
no subject
We better hurry. If we find him, we'll keep him at the library. All right?
[All three nod, and set off on their mission. Perhaps nothing needs to be said at all. They pitch their ice creams into the trash on the way, and set off at a sprint.]
no subject
[she doesn't really believe that, though. kids around here don't seem to go missing for benign reasons, not ever. but she will try to push those thoughts away.
she will head to the theater. that seems maybe the least likely place he'd go; surely he wouldn't have wandered off, knowing how much del worries him. but at least they'll be able to say they checked, know for sure. so she'll run there, ask to be let in just to look around.]
no subject
Wot's all this then, wot's all this? Wot 'ave we got 'ere, are you— [Richie starts in a terrible English accent, but Eddie slaps a hand over his mouth.]
Shut up, Richie. Hey, Jen, wassamatter? [He releases his pal, who clues into the mood for once and pushes his glasses back into place.] You look like you've seen a ghost.
[Do you tell them about Bax?]
no subject
on the other hand, maybe she does know them...? or maybe it feels like she does...?
she does tell them.]
We can't find Del's little brother. Have you seen him?
no subject
Oh shit. Uh. [He looks to Eddie, who meets his eyes with a slight panic. Richie looks back to Jen, suddenly a live-wire.] One sec!
[He darts into the theatre, past the slacking usher who is chatting up the pretty teenage ticket clerk. Eddie shakes his head in the meanwhile.]
The show doesn't start for another twenty minutes, there's barely anyone in there. We were just waiting around because we're waiting on a few extra guys. It's Bax, right? Tall kid?
[Richie reappears in a clumsy flash of knees and elbows, gasping.] It's just that fuck Peter Gordon and his girlfriend in there. No kids. Shit, you think something happened to him?
[Eddie pulls out his aspirator and gives himself a whiff, looking pale already.] Don't fucking panic! We'll take a look around downtown. All right Jen? And if we find him we'll march him up to the diner and we'll order him a grilled cheese, and we'll make him sit there until his brother can come give him shit. If not...
[Richie's rarely looked so serious.]
Then we'll find you. And we'll keep looking after that, until the little joker turns up. Jeeeee-sus Christ. [He looks to her, hesitating.] Just...don't go near the water while you're looking. Okay? Kids can slip and stuff. Drains too.
[He's trying to sound casual, but there's a steely undercurrent to it. A grave warning.]
no subject
It's Bax. And... I doubt he would have wandered off to see a movie. He wouldn't want to worry Del. So something bad might have happened.
[so she's not very surprised when they don't find him in there. she's not panicking, because she's choosing not to, but there's something very relieving in the way that they take her seriously, snap to attention, immediately have plans in motion. she'll just nod along.]
I'll look for you at the diner later, just to be sure. I won't go near the water. [she takes a deep breath, thinking about the grave way they're talking. they know.] ...Thank you for helping.
no subject
Richie smiles. It's not as dopey or as shit-eating as his usual grins. More earnest now, even in spite of the mounting dread.]
Anytime, schweetheart.
[Eddie punches his arm.]
Stop doing Humphry Bogart, asshole, let's go find that kid.
Right. Bye, Jen.
[Eddie nods.] Later, Jen!
[The pair dart off.]
no subject
she will go back to find the others, then, hoping maybe they found him already.]
no subject
Yeah.
[ is the only sound he manages to get out, his mouth dry like sawdust. he clenches his fists and just... runs, as fast as he can with his short strides.
fuck fuck fuck. he wants to beat up that kid's parents for letting any of these kids out of their sight. they knew what happened to yves and the other kids, they knew there was a threat lurking out there. it just further proves what jen had said, what they'd all already known. that the grown-ups here don't give a shit about them and they've got to fend for themselves in this horrible world because no one else is going to.
he wonders if there'd been a clown at that party. he really doesn't want to wonder that.
he races off toward city centre, to the park and the paul bunyan statue they used to climb on, and he tries to pretend that the blur to his vision is just because he's so damn fast, not because his eyes are welling up in panic and guilt, because he already knew they couldn't trust these shitty adults, so why the hell did he just leave his brother in their care and expect things to be okay? ]
no subject
It doesn't seem to be the case today. The only kids there are one he knows from school — Bill Denbrough, a friends of Ben and Beverly's — and Mike Hanlon, who he knows from plain sight. Even if he attended the same piddling school as Yves, there was no flying under the radar when you were the only black kid in town.
They're walking their bikes down the lane, but both slow when they catch sight of Del's face.]
Whoa, whoa, where's the fire? [Mike asks, holding up a peaceable hand to slow Del's rush.]
Del, w-w-what's w-wrong? [Bill's stutter gets in his way all the time, but he stands steadier than most kids. Meets Del's eyes with a surety that makes you feel seen.
He'd know this panic, after all. His brother was the first to die.
Do you tell them about Bax?]
no subject
It's...
[ he looks at bill and the words catch in his throat. running into him feels like it's an omen, almost, like he's looking in a mirror at who he's about to become, who he'd give anything not to be. ]
Bax is— I'm lookin' for him. [ he can't bring himself to say he's missing, even though it's written all over his face. ] Y-you haven't seen him, have you?
no subject
Oh, fudge... [Mike says faintly.] Do you think he could be in town, or outside?
...C-c-ould've gone anywhere. You up to ch-check N-Neibolt Street? K-K-Kid could have g-gone to s-s-see the train t-tracks.
[Mike looks unsettled, but he nods all right.] And if we find him, we'll bring him back up here. To the soda shop, they're open late, there's always kids in there.
[Both of them look back to Del, and Bill's eyes flick between the other boy's. Bill's tall for his age while Del may be quite short, but somehow locking eyes now feels like an even match. For better or for worse. Deciding something very serious, he gives only one piece of advice. It doesn't make much sense.]
I-if you s-see something strange out there, you g-g-gotta run, or you g-g-gotta use y-your imagination. [His jaw sets and his shoulders square.] Th-that's the only w-w-way kids can g-g-get out of a mess.
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he nods and swallows. ]
...Right. Thanks.
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The three of your regroup soon after. Individually, you've had no luck, but once you're together you get a lead. Another kid says he saw Bax running down into the Barrens. A young girl says she saw him near the sewer pipes, while taking a walk on the overpass with her big sister.
No one's seen him after that.
With no other choice, the three of you race down into the green, down near the stink of the Kenduskeag river, where the city sewage dilutes and sails out to parts unknown. It's a hard run, even for the most active kids, and you are panting and wheezing by the time you come to one of those foreboding metal mushrooms, jutting up from packed earth and entangled in weeds. One already had the massive lid hauled off, leaning against the side. It would take about four or five kids to both unscrew and lift it.
There's an abandoned sneaker in front of it, just Bax's size.]
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[ he doesn't understand. why the fuck would bax have come here? he saw that monster in the pipes before too, he knows about the kids who've disappeared, it's a fucking sewer on top of everything else. he knows nothing good can possibly come out of playing somewhere like this, so why...
as winded as he is, the moment he convinces his weak limbs to unfreeze, he goes dashing for the sewer pipe.
he doesn't look too hard at the sneaker because he doesn't want to recognize it. ]
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[she says this grimly when they see the sneaker, because it's not really a warning. she knows they can't ignore finding bax's sneaker. they aren't going to go back to the diner and wait. she just feels she should say it now, so they're all aware.]
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I think we're going in the water anyway.
[ he'll follow the other two just as quickly. No point in waiting now. ]
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The three scale the ladder, one at a time, into musky, repugnant stink. The grey water is up to their knees and the squish under foot is a promise of worse unseen below, should they happen to stumble. Ahead there's a broad, dark pipe, large enough for a man to crouch and walk. Kids can do it standing, and so you do.
It's forbiddingly dark down here. Noises echo. No light. Maybe one of you has a match? Maybe you trace a hand along the wall to find your way. It may not do you much good. As the warnings say, the Derry sewage system is a maze, and people do get lost.
Not the sort of thing you want to think about, but it's impossible not to.
Rats squeak, skitter. Probably crawling on higher piles of waste along the walls. There's running water somewhere distant, and then somewhere quite close. How can you know? It's hard to see.
Easy to imagine, isn't it? Easy to imagine anything down here. Bill said to use your imaginations, but it's easy enough for an imagination to use you. This is a place for nightmares. Not little kids.
Or maybe today is an exception. There's a muffled sound. An echo from somewhere much further down.
On your next step there's a drop off, and you fall three feet into a different pipe system. There's no dodging the muck now.
The sound rises again. You think it sounds like a sob.]
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he hears that sound from below. he falls. he's disgusting. it's fine. then he hears it again. it's a horribly unnerving sound to hear, echoing down in these dark pipes, and it sends a shiver through him... but at the same time, it fills him with enough hope to keep pushing on with all his strength in its direction, the hope that maybe they're at least not too late. maybe he won't be the next bill. ]
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CW: Child murder, cannibalism
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CW: Child murder, cannibalism, gore, animal attack
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