{"sf1_id":1508925,"sf2_id":"7ejwdg2m","title":"The Leaves of Fall Act 2: Fear the Nobodies (Part 13)","author":"Oliver_Hart","words":3369,"posted_at":"2019-11-03T04:14:13.000Z","tags":["Adventure","Alternate Reality","Anon","Boy","Brother","Bunny","Classroom","Couple","Emo","Fight","Girl","Green text","Greentext","HMOFA","Halloween","Heterosexual","High School","Hmofa/","Human","Kissing","Plot Development","Rabbit","Siblings","Slow burn","Young Romance","anthro/human"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1508925-the-leaves-of-fall-act-2-fear-the-nobodies-part-13","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/7ejwdg2m","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/74/0c/740c08b2-5c78-4636-a0b0-f9c43cc3ae43","description":"You've never really 'fit in' with the heavily divided Ranchview High School crowd. Jock, Goth, Prep, Cheerleader, Nerd... you were never any of these. But as Halloween approaches, strange things start happening, and a dark ritual begins with the finding of a curious red book. It's a race against time for you and your friends to stop a group of students from ushering in an age of darkness, and to also figure out just what the hell is wrong with that rabbit.  \n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  \n  \nAbout this version: originally, The Leaves of Fall was split into two pastebins to compensate for the length of the story. Given that pastebin has chosen to censor this story for ambiguous reasons, it will forever be stored here and on AO3. This new version contains spelling, grammar and content fixes. Please understand that the content is all the same as the earlier versions minus some sentences being changed and fixed up. I cannot stress this enough: no new content has been added. It's my hope that this is a cleaner, easier-to-read version of the story.  \n  \nCover: [https://imgur.com/a/vZS4Q](https://imgur.com/a/vZS4Q)  \nSam (drawn by Akella of /hmofa/) [https://imgur.com/a/nk3t1wT](https://imgur.com/a/nk3t1wT)  \nFan art collection: [https://imgur.com/a/SCCSIQv](https://imgur.com/a/SCCSIQv)  \nAccompanying playlist (WIP): [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9aXlzDRA49QKxgYsOV2JuDd410\\_nI-0J](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9aXlzDRA49QKxgYsOV2JuDd410_nI-0J)  \nAlternative link: [https://www.sofurry.com/view/1479078](https://www.sofurry.com/view/1479078)  \nTotal word count: 147,552 words","content":"\\\u003eStella whips her head behind her  \n\\\u003eThe badger freezes, and then jams a finger in Sam’s direction and snarls  \n\\\u003e”Sam, you stay far away from that crystal, you hear me? You’re not a level six Lazer Lotus. You touch it and I’ll have your ears hanging on my wall, Thumper!”  \n\\\u003eYou writhe in Stella’s grip like a worm on a hook  \n“We don’t want the crystal you insane bitch, we want the plant!”  \n\\\u003e”Right, right. But you were just taking my hidden crystals with you. You can’t fool me, goon. I’ve studied under the great master Roger Pernberry. Your mind-zog won’t work on me.”  \n\\\u003eSam hesitates  \n\\\u003e”I-I just-“  \n“Sam, listen to me.” You sound desperate and depleted.\u0026nbsp; “The plant. Grab that plant, and run as fast as you can-”  \n\\\u003e”Listen to me, cottontail. You take another step forward towards that crystal and you are FIRED, you hear me? You gonna listen to this deep-state FUCKO?” She shakes your arm. “Or your fucking boss? Who have you known longer?”  \n\\\u003eYou try to stand but are forced back to the floor  \n\\\u003eStella tightens her grip  \n\\\u003eSam’s is shaking as he desperately tries to summon to mind a decision  \n\\\u003e”SAM!” Stella snarls another demand at him  \n  \n\\\u003eYou eyes slam shut  \n\\\u003eOrdinarily, you’d just bend the knee and give in, admitting to being CIA, deep-state, ZOG, whatever  \n\\\u003eBut now you’re just thinking about how to get out of this crazy badger’s grip  \n\\\u003eA wild idea comes to mind  \n\\\u003eYou could bite her  \n\\\u003eYES  \n\\\u003eBITE HER  \n\\\u003eYou unclench your rather pathetic jaw to crunch into whatever part of her you can get your teeth on  \n\\\u003eBut you don’t need to  \n\\\u003eYou drop wordlessly to the floor, Stella no longer holding you in her greasy vice-grip  \n\\\u003e”BETRAYED BY MY OWN MIN-WAGE EMPLOYEE!” Stella shrieks in disbelief  \n\\\u003eYou open your eyes just enough to see a light, chestnut colored blur ripping down the hall  \n\\\u003eIt’s Sam  \n\\\u003eAnd by the sound of Stella’s sheer dismay, he’s got the plant too  \n\\\u003eThe badger’s hefty form plods after the rabbit, who easily outpaces Stella like it was nothing  \n\\\u003eJesus Christ  \n\\\u003eYour heart is pounding; blood flooding your face  \n\\\u003eHe actually did it  \n\\\u003eThe absolute madman  \n  \n\\\u003eYou are Sam  \n\\\u003eAnd you just fucked up  \n\\\u003eYour heart is pounding in your throat, and that’s not from the exertion or from sprinting  \n\\\u003eYou’ve just pissed of Stella something awful, as evidenced by the fact that she’s literally frothing at the mouth, eyes terrifically wide and full of predatory desire as she scrambles after you  \n\\\u003eYou’ve just got to get this plant to Mike  \n\\\u003eHe’ll know what to do, right?  \n\\\u003eRight?  \n\\\u003eGod these hallways feel long  \n\\\u003eStella can’t outrun you, sure, but you get the feeling something isn’t right  \n\\\u003eOrdinarily there’s at least ONE or two students who are here by now  \n\\\u003eAnd yet it’s silent as a graveyard, save for the mad scramble that you’re currently winning  \n\\\u003eYou just fix your eyes on the distant lunchroom, and the doors at the very end of it that will lead you to sweet, open pavement, and then to Mike  \n\\\u003eAnd then what?  \n\\\u003e”I SHOULDA KNOWN YOU WERE DEEP STATE, SAM!” Stella’s rapidly fading voice reaches your tender ears ”I’ll get you, Thumper- who the hell are you punks?”  \n\\\u003eYou throw a quick glance over your shoulders  \n\\\u003eStella is no longer behind you  \n\\\u003eYou skid to a halt  \n\\\u003eThe plant you were carting nips at your fingers aggressively, but you can’t take your eyes off the empty hallway  \n\\\u003eWhere the hell did Stella go?  \n\\\u003eSilence screams back at you  \n\\\u003eAnd then…  \n\\\u003eA hellish chorus of deep, throaty growls rises towards you, sending your heart racing  \n\\\u003eTo your finely tuned ears, it sounded like… nothing you’ve ever heard before  \n\\\u003eDeep and feral, yet with a sustained cadence to it, like someone pulling a very unpleasant note on a cello for too long  \n\\\u003eSomething about that sound makes the adrenaline spike in your veins — invokes that primal drive to flee  \n\\\u003eIt’s almost the same noise you heard in the annals of the school on Friday, just lower and more controlled  \n\\\u003eYou take a few plodding steps backwards, eyes never leaving the spot where Stella once was  \n\\\u003eYour eyes are drawn to the end of the hall by a sudden flicker of something dark at the end of the hall  \n\\\u003eIt’s there for a moment — and then it’s gone, like a stroke of lightning  \n\\\u003eThat hellish choir begins again  \n\\\u003eWelp, time to run  \n\\\u003eYou start forward, but come to a quick, skidding halt while the sound of something ancient and evil grows closer  \n\\\u003eIt’s almost as if someone were driving nails through your wide feet, sticking you to the floors  \n\\\u003eYou’re so close to freedom, and yet… you can’t move your legs. Can’t force yourself to turn around and look away  \n\\\u003eIt’s like trying to start a car without any gas in the tank  \n\\\u003eYou look down to see that your legs aren’t even trembling  \n\\\u003eThat horrible, low, gurgling noise is getting closer, like banshee-shriek of a train hurtling towards you  \n\\\u003eFuck  \n\\\u003eWhy can’t you move?  \n\\\u003eYou thrust your arms forward to try and propel your body in a direction — any direction  \n\\\u003eThe motion serves to thaw the ice in your veins just a little bit  \n\\\u003e”A-Anon?” You weakly call out, finding it a strain to raise your voice above a tired shout  \n\\\u003eYou look around  \n\\\u003eThe lockers  \n\\\u003eThe doors leading to rooms  \n\\\u003eIt all seems so normal  \n\\\u003eExcept the end of the hall stretching away from you, like a point infinitely vanishing on the horizon  \n\\\u003eJust staring makes you dizzy  \n\\\u003e”Hey!” Mike’s voice behind you doesn’t make you jump  \n\\\u003eIn fact, you feel a strange sense of calm wash over you when you turn around to face him…  \n\\\u003e…Who is standing about 10 feet away from you, still as stone  \n\\\u003eThe booming growl, like a wave breaking, retreats as Mike appears  \n\\\u003e”M-M-Mike, I-I’m glad it’s y-you,” you breathe a sigh of genuine relief, even though you’re pretty sure he doesn’t like you  \n\\\u003eMike says nothing for a few anxious seconds, and then smiles  \n\\\u003e”Me too.”  \n\\\u003eHe takes a light step forward  \n“H-Here.” You extend the venus flytrap forward. “A-Anon got the p-plant, but you h-have to help me f-find him, we got chased an-and I lost him back the-there.”  \n\\\u003eYour friend freezes in place, just a few feet away from you now  \n\\\u003eHis arms slacken at his side as he curiously cocks his head, like a child encountering something new for the first time  \n\\\u003eHis mouth moves, but his words aren’t audible — even to your ultra-sensitive hearing  \n\\\u003e”Sam?” Mike says at last, a mechanical cadence in his voice  \n\\\u003eAlarm bells are starting to ring behind your eyes  \n\\\u003eSomething isn’t right  \n\\\u003eYou take a cautious step backwards, only to find that Mike remains rooted in place, his head still curiously on a tilt  \n\\\u003e”Sam? Is that your name?” He repeats, sending shivers racing up your spine, as if a cold finger were tracing lines into your back  \n\\\u003eSomething in your heart is telling you to run  \n\\\u003eYou throw a quick glance over your shoulders, and with your freehand you unconsciously begin tearing at your ears  \n\\\u003eThe hallway seems to positively loom ahead, almost going vertical at its end  \n\\\u003eThat had to be a trick of the light  \n\\\u003eOr you’re hallucinating something awful  \n\\\u003eWhatever it is, you desperately need it to stop  \n\\\u003e”Sam, you okay there?” Mike is closer now  \n\\\u003eYou swear to fuck you’d have heard him move  \n\\\u003e”You’re scaring me, dude,” he says, a familiar tone snaking back into his voice, though it’s colored by a very subtle flatness that sounds positively inhuman  \n\\\u003eIt’s that same kind of cock-sure attitude that he’s always got, but it seems… misplaced  \n\\\u003eWrong  \n\\\u003eOut of context  \n“Y-You’re scaring me!” you squeak, taking a wide step back. “M-Mike? Please s-say something?”  \n\\\u003e”I can’t, Sam.”  \n\\\u003eAnd then he starts to laugh  \n\\\u003eOr, it would be laughter if there were any noise coming out of him  \n\\\u003eInstead, his body twists and writhes as if he were in a fit of tremendous hilarity   \n\\\u003eHe soundlessly flexes and keels over, face reddening and contorting with strain  \n\\\u003eAnd then he halts entirely, eyes locked on you with robotic and mechanical precision  \n\\\u003eYour legs feel unlocked now, but they’re still heavy with tension and fear  \n\\\u003eAll the muscles in your powerful legs coil up for flight as your amber eyes search Mike’s for something familiar  \n\\\u003eIt’s like looking into two polished stones  \n\\\u003eThey do nothing but reflect back at you  \n\\\u003eWhatever this is, it isn’t Mike  \n  \n\\\u003eYou turn on your heels, feeling the tension in your leg explode — launching you forward like a bullet shot out of a gun  \n\\\u003eYou’re surprisingly slower than you thought you’d be  \n\\\u003eIt’s like there’s 50 pound weights strapped to your thighs  \n\\\u003eHeart hammering in your chest, you strain and struggle, fighting for every yard you gain  \n\\\u003eAll to the sound of that hellish call ringing in your ears, deafening the inner voices that ordinarily whip you into panicked flights  \n\\\u003e’Mike’ is still standing where you left him, an isolated figure in the middle of the hall, alone, no longer even watching you; his gaze fixed on something else in front of you — something you can’t see  \n\\\u003eOr can you?  \n\\\u003eAnother flash of darkness at the end of the hall   \n\\\u003eThis time you catch some definite shape to the rapidly displaced light  \n\\\u003eTall and angular — nearly as tall as you — but drawn with sharp points that seem defined even in the fleeting glimpses you catch of it  \n\\\u003eIt’s like smoke contained only by a thin, ephemeral line, in the shape of a… large dog of some kind?  \n\\\u003eIt’s gone when you try to focus on it  \n\\\u003eAnd so is Mike  \n\\\u003eGone in a flash, almost as quick as he appeared behind you that first time  \n\\\u003eIt occurs to you that you are suddenly making quite a bit of progress careening down the hall  \n\\\u003eYou skid to a halt  \n\\\u003eDown the hall is /not/ where you want to go right now  \n\\\u003eNot with that… thing… down there. Whatever it is  \n\\\u003eYou bank a hard-as-you-can right down an intersecting hallway…  \n\\\u003eAnd find yourself staring at something familiar  \n\\\u003eYou’re somehow in the same hallway you just came from  \n\\\u003eTurning behind you to look only reveals the same hallway /again/  \n\\\u003eSame look, same lockers, same shine on the floor, same distance to the end…  \n\\\u003eYou half expected to see ‘Mike’ there waiting for you again  \n\\\u003eThis is some Twilight Zone shit  \n\\\u003eTry to remain calm. You’re just stressed and maybe got turned around  \n\\\u003eRight?  \n\\\u003eTurning back to go the way you came only puts you in the same hallway again  \n\\\u003eIt’s like being trapped in a maze of mirrors — every direction and turn looks identical   \n  \n\\\u003eYou race on down the hallways, trying doors as you go  \n\\\u003eNone of them can be opened, not even with the set of keys Stella gave to you — a fact you don’t understand  \n\\\u003eDid the locks change?  \n\\\u003eYou try banging on the doors — first cautiously — and then with frantic need to escape, to run, hide, to find somebody who will tell you everything is going to be okay  \n\\\u003eA protector  \n\\\u003eAnon, Mike, Alex, an adult, your older brother even  \n  \n\\\u003eEventually you slump yourself against a locker, feeling the very real chill of bare metal against the nape of your neck  \n\\\u003eThe venus fly trap has stopped writhing so hard now  \n\\\u003eNow it just lays flaccid in your grip, the shiny emerald bound in its roots  \n\\\u003eIt feels like there’s a rope around your neck, tightening the budding knot in your throat  \n\\\u003eNo  \n\\\u003eDon’t do this here  \n\\\u003eYour eyes sting with tears  \n\\\u003eGod damnit you coward, you crybaby  \n\\\u003eQuickly, you rub your eyes with your sleeve, shooting glances down each end of the hall, checking for foot traffic out of habit  \n\\\u003e”A-Anon?” you say, straining above a whisper  \n\\\u003e”Anyone?”  \n\\\u003eSilence answers back  \n\\\u003eNobody is there  \n\\\u003eNot Mike, Alex  \n\\\u003eEspecially not Anon  \n\\\u003eAlone again  \n\\\u003eNobody around for you to burden  \n\\\u003eNobody around to hurt  \n\\\u003eJust as it always should be  \n  \n\\\u003eA low, simmering growl prompts you to your feet, instantly banishing any lingering feelings of worthlessness  \n\\\u003eThat shape — the dog on all fours — blinks into existence near the end of the hall, but just close enough for you to gain some kind of outline or indication of its composition  \n\\\u003eYou see a sharp body with ears like knives, lean and starved, shrouded in dark mists  \n\\\u003eThe strange dog has a tight and angular face, though you can only see the outlines through the thick fog pouring off its body  \n\\\u003eA pair of bright yellow eyes glow back at you through its shadowy cloak, obscuring the fine details of its snarling jaw  \n\\\u003eThough it sounds like its growling with something ancient and evil, its mouth doesn’t appear to be moving  \n\\\u003eTo your relief, it doesn’t move towards you  \n\\\u003eIt only watches as you begin to shake and tremble like a leaf caught in a high wind  \n\\\u003eLike the pathetic rabbit you are, you press your body up against the locker and squeak pitifully under the strange beast’s predatory gaze  \n\\\u003eIts shape is more of an ashen outline, but you can see just how skinny it is  \n\\\u003eHungry, perhaps?  \n\\\u003eWith another growl, it flashes into nothing right before you, as if it were suddenly deleted from existence  \n\\\u003eRinging silence sings in your ears now  \n\\\u003eYou can only hear the blood pulsing in your ears, the rapid drumbeat of your frantic heart pounding in your chest  \n\\\u003eYou shut your eyes and try to think of sleepovers and Dr. Beppers and movies with Anon  \n\\\u003eWhat would Samurai Outlaw — hero of your own creation — do right now?  \n\\\u003eShe’d probably throw her hood up and hunt down that strange creature  \n\\\u003eLike a hero  \n\\\u003eYou try to stand up straight, but your legs are shaking too hard  \n\\\u003eAnd besides  \n\\\u003eYou’re no superhero  \n\\\u003eYou’re weak  \n\\\u003eAnd pathetic  \n  \n\\\u003e“Sam?”  \n\\\u003eThat voice  \n\\\u003eGod you haven’t heard it in years  \n\\\u003eIt’s so familiar  \n\\\u003eWhen you open them again and see the source of that painfully familiar voice, you drop the venus fly trap at your feet  \n”J-Jake?”  \n  \n\\\u003eIt’s him, almost the same as you remember him  \n\\\u003eA tall, lanky rabbit with your dad’s face and eyes, yet younger and less jaded than your father, stands before you  \n\\\u003eDark circles pool under his eyes, and his eyebrows are sloped inward, betraying any kindness you might have been able to find in him  \n\\\u003e”Sam, what the hell are you doing?” He asks, smoke trailing from his lips as he speaks  \n\\\u003eHe raises a glowing cigarette and gives it a quick puff  \n\\\u003e”You hiding again or something?”  \n\\\u003eHis words stings just like they did all those years ago  \n\\\u003e”Thought I taught you better. Taught you how to look out for yourself. You’re not going to let everything I did for you go to waste, right?”  \n\\\u003eThat familiar tightness seizes around your throat as tears spring to your eyes  \n\\\u003eNot now  \n\\\u003e”Are you crying?” Your brother bends down to eye level, and you can’t help but notice the way he doesn’t cast a shadow in the sterilized light of the hallways  \n\\\u003eHis face contorts with anger  \n\\\u003e”God damnit, Sam. It’s been years and you’re still the same little crybaby you always were. I can’t believe you’re going to fucking lose it right here.”  \n“I-I-I’m s-s-sorry, I c-can’t h-h-help it.” You try wiping your tears away, but Jacob catches your wrists, pulling you painfully away from the lockers that had served as your anchor to reality  \n\\\u003eHis vice-grip around your wrist feels very real, even if you can’t understand how or why he’s here  \n\\\u003eHe drags you to the middle of the hallway  \n\\\u003eYou try digging your feet in to the slippery linoleum, but Jacob only pulls harder  \n“P-Please stop!” You plead, feeling like a doll tugged along by an angry child. “Y-You’re h-h-hurting me!”  \n\\\u003e”Good.” Jacob says with a heat to his voice. “Don’t want you getting soft on me.”  \n\\\u003eAll it’s missing is the whiskey reek  \n\\\u003e”You know Sam, you’ve caused a lot of people a lot of hurt in these past years. I thought I could make you strong, but I realized something.”  \n\\\u003eHe stands you in the center of the hallway, fingers digging painfully into your shoulders, rooting you in place despite your fierce desire to run away  \n\\\u003e”Deep down you’re a coward. A burden. Dad was right about you.”  \n\\\u003eA train whistle blows  \n\\\u003e”You’ve always been a burden to our family, to Mom, Dad, and even me.”  \n\\\u003eYou shake when you see that glowing orb of light emerging from the farthest end of the hallway, looking like a shining golden nail  \n\\\u003eA nail that’s speeding towards you  \n\\\u003eThe heavy body of a train appears at the end of the hallway, carrying its singular light like an angry torch as it trundles forward  \n\\\u003e”This time you’re going to get it right,” Jacob says, his voice mechanical and cold  \n\\\u003eThe train whistle shrieks again  \n\\\u003eThere’s the sound of steel racing forward, hundreds of metric tons of power and kinetic energy on the move, gliding across a floor without any tracks  \n\\\u003e”Hold.” Jacob commands  \n\\\u003eYou feel his grip on your shoulder disappear  \n\\\u003e”Wait for it.”  \n\\\u003eYou couldn’t disobey, even if you wanted to. Your entire body seizes up with fear  \n\\\u003eThe train is so loud now that you can barely hear Jacob  \n\\\u003e”HOLD.”  \n\\\u003eAnd then…  \n\\\u003eEverything goes quiet as the rush takes over your head  \n\\\u003eIt’s not even a conscious decision at this point  \n\\\u003eIt was autonomy that forced your feet  \n\\\u003eYou hurl your body off to the side and crash against the lockers with the train still bearing down, not even anywhere near you  \n\\\u003eJacob turns to you and his expression is so cold, sterile and hollow that you can’t look away, as if he’d frozen your eyes on his own  \n\\\u003eHis eyes that reflect nothing  \n\\\u003eAnd even though everything is still that same, horrible frequency of pure silence, you can hear Jacob as clear as glass shattering on a quiet day  \n\\\u003e”That’s no dodge, you fucking coward.”  \n\\\u003eThe train collides into him  \n\\\u003eHe’s gone in a wisp of smoke, vaporized into the ephemeral  \n\\\u003eAll that silence is gone with the sudden explosion of blaring horns and careening steel as the train blurs past in a smear of darkness.  \n\\\u003eThe train rolls on until your eyes slam shut and you clap your palms over your ears to stifle the noise and banish the sight  \n\\\u003eThe train is gone when you at last venture to open your eyes  \n\\\u003eSlowly you work your hands away from your ears  \n\\\u003e…Silence, save for the sound of sneakers pounding on the floor in the distance  \n\\\u003eYou shake your head a few times as if to shake loose a dream  \n\\\u003eA very unpleasant dream  \n\\\u003eThat’s what everything was, right? Just a dream? A hallucination?  \n\\\u003eThe venus fly trap writhes at your feet, and it nips at your furred fingers as you lift it up  \n\\\u003eThe sound of sneakers against the floor is getting closer, but you don’t feel like you have the strength or even the drive to lift your head  \n\\\u003eThe words of your brother bounce around painfully in your skull  \n\\\u003e”Deep down, you’re a coward. A burden.”  \n\\\u003eIt was just like it was back then all those years ago  \n\\\u003e”That’s no dodge, you fucking coward.”  \n\\\u003eEven the face he made?  \n\\\u003eThat flash of anger and then the icy-stillness of his features?  \n\\\u003eIt was just like a smoldering flame ready to be kindled  \n\\\u003eYou could have sworn it was dad  \n\\\u003eYou’d cry if you could (like the wimp you are) but you feel too badly-shaken to do anything but point your eyes to the floor and try to evade the mental anguish  \n\\\u003eWelp  \n\\\u003eHopefully whoever is racing down the hallway will just put you out of your misery  \n\\\u003e”SAM!”  \n\\\u003eA familiar voice; a light in the darkness of your thoughts  \n\\\u003e”SAM! RUN!”  \n\\\u003eIt’s Anon, racing around a corner, coming directly towards you  \n\\\u003eAnd the sound of heavy feet against the tiles tells you Anon isn’t alone","series":{"name":"The Leaves of Fall","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1507445-the-leaves-of-fall-act-2-fear-the-nobodies-part-12.json","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1510219-the-leaves-of-fall-act-2-fear-the-nobodies-part-14.json"}}