Chapter Text
The last rays of the sun filtered through the leafy canopy as Toby and Jim ran through the forest. Rushing through the undergrowth, the young boys snapped twigs and crushed newly fallen autumn leaves under their small feet. Jim giggled as he easily avoided Toby in their game of chase, sprinting round and round a tree until they were both panting and out of breath. Backs against a tree, they both slid to the ground with their legs splayed out in front of them.
After sitting for a while, Toby looked up at the sky, and saw that the stars would be coming out soon. “Shoot! Jim, we were supposed to be home before dark!” Toby exclaimed.
Quickly scrambling to his feet, he grabbed Jim’s hand and started to lead him in the direction of their cul de sac. After a few minutes of fast walking Toby felt his foot catch on a tree root, hidden in the gloomy twilight. Letting go of Jim’s hand he windmilled his arms, trying to regain his balance, but ended up falling face first on the ground. Toby moaned in pain on the ground before beginning to roll over and starting to sit up.
“Come on Tobes! Mom and Nanna are going to kill us if we’re out here after dark!” Fretted Jim as he pulled Toby to his feet.
Just as Toby had stood up and regained his balance they both froze. Low growling and the shifting of a heavy body moving through the undergrowth broke the silence of the forest. In the murky darkness to their left a huge bulking bear lept out of the shadows.
Stalking them on all fours, the bear towered over the pair, at least double the height of the young children. Flashing yellow eyes watched the them, setting on Toby.
Panic tore through Toby’s chest at the sight of the lumbering monster, barely 5 feet away, and coming closer.
The bear sensed the fear of the children, and roared. Its yellow teeth bared, dripping with saliva, it rushed forward.
Retreating, Toby stumbled, and fell with his back up to the tree. “J-Jim! B-Bear! What do we do!?” Toby cried, his voice shaking in terror, still attempting to scramble back.
Jim, seeing Toby’s panic, stepped between him and the bear. Little fists clenched at his side, Jim did his best to be intimidating. "Don’t you dare hurt my friend! You big meanie!” He yelled, doing his best to be confident, but voice still shaking in terror.
The fear in Jim’s voice only enraged the bear. Letting out one more roar, the bear charged forward and smacked Jim aside with its large fore paw, sending the boy flying into a nearby tree.
Toby’s stomach dropped as he heard the sound of flesh smacking wood, then thumping on to the ground. Before he could look to see if Jim was alright, the bear was on top of him.
The bear loomed over Toby, trapping him between its large forelegs. Mouth open, saliva dripping down it prepared to bite down on the defenseless boy. As the bear lunged, an indigo shape slammed into the beast, knocking it sideways. Without missing a beat, the figure let out an earth shattering roar of its own, and started slashing at the bear with its own claws. After three solid strikes the bear roared in pain and scrambled to its feet. Toby’s indigo protector roared one last time, as the bear fled into the forest.
Still petrified at the base of the tree, Toby looked on in a mixture of terror and wonder at his savior. Standing a foot taller than Toby’s diminutive height, the indigo figure appeared to be some kind of humanoid. With its back to him, he could see that they had long and graceful, but powerful looking limbs, covered in some kind of stony skin. The indigo stone was carved with flowing patterns of lines, following the curves of the body. The figure had long, sharp claws extending from its 4 fingers on each hand, glittering in the twilight. Its head was covered in long shaggy black hair, looking almost blue in the night, that reached the nape of its neck. The hair was interrupted by a set of pointed ears peaking out on either side. Set just above the ears were a small pair of tan horns, jutting out to the side and curving slightly to the back.
Seeing that the bear had fled, the indigo figure turned its head towards Toby. Toby let out a small gasp as he saw the face of the creature. Shaggy bangs framed it, which was defined by angular features. A large prominent nose sat just below the brow ridges of the creature, the slitted nostrils quivering with each breath. The figure had a prominent underbite, accented by fang-like tusks that poked up from its lower jaw. But the most startling feature had to be its eyes. Vertically split black pupils in orbs of bright blue locked on to Toby. They almost seemed to glow in the evening light.
The creature made a low croaking noise, as it reached out one of its clawed hands to the cowering Toby. Lurching forward the figure's eyes rolled up in the back of its head and collapsed to the ground.
The smack of stony flesh on the soft leaf mold of the forest floor broke Toby out of his stupor. Carefully getting up and slowly stepping forward Toby looked at his mysterious savior.
What is this thing? Toby had never seen anything like it. And why would it help him and Jim? Oh shoot! JIM!
Just as those thoughts raced through Toby's mind, the creature in front of him began to change. The indigo figure shrank, its hair shortening and claws fading away, until Jim was lying unconscious before him.
Wait, that purple thing was Jim? What? How? WHY?! As Toby was panicking internally, a sudden thought popped into his mind. However Jim had done it, he had saved Toby. It didn’t matter if Jim was a purple kangaroo or the boogeyman, he was still Toby’s best friend. A best friend who had just saved his life.
With that sudden realization, Toby quickly ran over to the still form of Jim lying face first on the forest floor. Kneeling down, he gently rolled Jim on to his back. After a second or two, Toby saw that Jim was still breathing, but thoroughly unconscious. Looking down on his friend, worry started to crowd his mind. How long would Jim be knocked out? How would Toby get his friend home? What would he say to Dr. Lake and Nana if he showed up with a passed out best friend?
“Jim? Come on Jimbo, you gotta wake up!” Toby demanded, while shaking the unconscious boy’s shoulder, as panic started to rear its ugly head.
A heavy stone dropped in Toby’s stomach. What if Jim didn’t wake up? What if he lost
Jim, just like he lost his parents? What if he was left alone all over again?
“Come on Jim! Please….. I can’t lose you too…” He sobbed over Jim, shaking him even harder.
After what felt like an eternity to the crying Toby, Jim slowly blinked and opened his eyes. Weakly reaching his hand up to Toby’s shoulder, Jim murmured. “Tobes? What's wrong?”
Hearing Jim’s voice, a new wave of sobs overcame Toby, as he scooped his best friend into a hug. “I thought I lost you! I thought I lost you like I lost mom and dad….” He managed to croak into his friend's shoulder.
Gently patting Toby on the back, Jim weakly replied. ”It's all right buddy. I’m here. I’ll always be here for you.”
Toby clung on to Jim, his anchor in a sea of grief. Slowly the sobs that wracked him quitied, as Toby managed to calm down.
Gently releasing Jim from the hug, Toby looked him up and down and worriedly asked. “Jim, are you ok?”
Sitting up, Jim slowly put a hand to his temple, and replied. “Uh…I think so? I’m not really sure. All I remember was getting hit by that bear, and waking up with you. What happened?”
Toby paused for a moment to gather his thoughts. “ I don't know what fully happened, but I know that the bear was ready to attack me, when this purplish blue blur attacked it and scared it off. Then the blur fell down, and turned into you.” Toby paused as the gears turned in his head. “So I guess you saved me?”
Jim looked down at his normal human hands, shocked by what Toby had said. “I… saved you? By becoming some kind of purple thing? What…. What did I look like?”
“I’m not sure what you were, but you were really cool!” Toby started to excitedly describe, forgetting the terror of the situaion. “You were, like, super strong, and had horns and claws and your skin looked like it was made of stone or something!”
Jim paused for a moment, as what Toby said sank in. Still looking at his hands, he replied in a daze. “Wh.. what? I had… stone skin? And claws?” After sitting shell shocked for a moment, Jim shaikley started to struggle to his feet. “Tobes, I… I think we need to go home. Whatever it was I turned into ….. doesn't sound…….. Safe.” Jim paused for a moment. “Toby, please, don’t …. don’t tell anyone what just happened.”
Toby quickly stood up as well. Putting his hand on Jim’s shoulder, he reassured his friend “Jim, whatever that was, we'll figure it out together. I promise.” Supporting Jim as they struggled to walk home, Toby looked over at him. “Best friends?”
Jim met Toby’s eyes, and gave a weak smile. “Yeah. Best Friends”
Jim had just arrived home after that terrifying encounter. Toby had already gone back to his house across the street, and Jim was standing before his front door. Anxiously, he opened the door and crept inside. Unfortunately for him, tonight was one of the nights where his mom would be home, and there she was waiting for him on the couch. She turned as the door creaked open.
“Jim honey! Where have you been?” Barbara started to interrogate, as a worried mother should, but then she saw what Jim looked like.
Jim’s shoes were covered in scuff marks, and his clothes were wrinkled and covered in dirt. Smudges of mud were on his face, twigs in his hair, and his eyes were red. Clearly Jim had been crying.
Quickly changing her attitude, she rushed over to her little boy. Gently gripping his shoulders, she looked at him with concern. “Jim, sweetie, are you alright? What happened to you?”
Not meeting her eyes, Jim started to shakily explain, sniffling every few words. “Toby and I were playing in the woods. We didn’t realize how late it was, and were coming back home. Then this big bear came out and attacked us…” Sniffling even harder, Jim could feel his throat closing up a bit as he remembered what happened. Struggling on, he explained. “It hit me. I don’t remember what happened next but Tobes said I turned into some kind of purple monster and scared off the bear.”
Suddenly Jim was enveloped by his mother in a bear hug. He burst into sobs, too overwhelmed by everything that had happened that night. He buried his face into his mother’s shoulders as she gently tried to calm him down.
“It's all right Jim. It's alright. Mommy’s got you. You're safe now.” She gently cooed to her crying boy. She gently rubbed his back, and they stayed there for quite some time.
Eventually, Jim had calmed down a little bit. Grabbing some tissues, Barbara wiped his eyes, and kissed his forehead.
“Do you want some hot coco Jim? We could even put whipped cream and sprinkles on it if you want.”
Still a little teary eyed, Jim nodded, and was gently led to the kitchen by his mother. Jim sat at their kitchen table, staring at his hands, while Barbara made his drink.
Setting the steaming mug down in front of him, Barbara pulled up a chair and sat next to Jim. While he sipped on the drink, Barbara examined him with her experienced eye, looking for any injuries. She did see that he seemed to be favoring his right shoulder. She would have to check that out, once he had calmed down a bit more.
After a few minutes Jim looked up at his mother. Gathering his courage, he finally spoke. "Mommy, what's wrong with me?"
Barbara, shocked by his sudden words, gently reached out and touched his shoulder. Looking him deep in his eyes, she sincerely responded "Jim there is nothing wrong with you. You're just a bit different. And that's nothing to be ashamed of."
5 Years Later
Twirling the chef’s knife in his hand, Jim deftly cored, peeled, and sliced the last apple in his pile. With practiced ease, he wiped off the dirty knife and threw it back into its proper place in the knife stand. In a separate bowl he whisked together sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt into a fine mixture. Tossing in the sliced apples, and a hint of lemon juice, he coated the fruit in the sweet and aromatic mixture. Grabbing the chilling pie crust from the fridge, he quickly rolled the flakey pastry into 2 equal sized circles, one he lined the tin pie pan with, the other left aside for the top. Pouring in the filling, and crimping the top crust to the bottom the pie was almost ready for the oven. With a steady hand he painted the top of the pie with a light egg wash, and delicately scored the upper pastry. Holding the pie in one hand and opening the oven with the other, Jim gently slid the pie into the preheated oven. Pulling out his phone, and setting a timer for 20 minutes, Jim quickly cleaned up the kitchen, disposing of the apple waste and wiping off the counters.
Hands in his pockets Jim strolled to the front of the house, where he could hear the sound of video games. Rounding the corner from the hallway, he could see that Toby was sitting on the floor with his back to the couch, vigorously tapping away on his game controller.
“Hey Tobes, pie’s in the oven.” Jim stated as he sat on the floor next to Toby.
The ginger boy next to him cracked a smile, still focused on the game. “Sounds great Jimbo! Hop in, the next round is about to start.” Picking up the other controller, Jim and Toby played their game until the timer went off.
Setting down the controller Jim stood up, stretching his lower back. “I need to put some foil on the edges of the crust so it doesn't burn, be right back.”
Walking back to the kitchen, he grabbed the tinfoil and tore off a long thin line. Grabbing a dish towel, Jim took the pie out of the oven and covered the edges of the crust in the tinfoil. Whisking the pie back in the oven, he set another 20 minute timer.
“Hey Jimbo!” Toby called from the other room.
“Yeah Tobes?” Jim replied, walking back to the front room.
“Wanna watch a movie?”
“Sure. What were you thinking?” Jim queried as he walked into the room.
Holding up a DVD case, Toby replied. “I’ve got Danger House here. I figured it would be a good rewatch before the sequel next year.”
“Sounds like a good idea, Tobes.” Walking over to the blinds and shutting them, Jim continued “let's make this a bit more spooky!”
The closed blinds blocked out the rest of the fading evening light, leaving the room only light by the blue flicker of the television, and the low orange glow from the kitchen.
Plopping next to Toby on the couch, they started the movie.
20 minutes later, the boys were clinging onto each other, leaning forward as they were lost in the tension of the movie. The main character was creeping down the hall, the soft music swelling, accented by the creaking of the floor boards and crashing of thunder. Suddenly the music peaked as a monster jumped out of the shadows, complemented by the shriek of the main character, and the blaring of Jims alarm. Both boys were so startled that they screamed themselves, clutching onto eachother even tighter.
Heart racing and adrenaline pumping, Jim quickly whipped out his phone and turned off the alarm. He was snapped out of the initial panic as he realized he was starting to shift. He could feel the waves of extra strength and resilience that his body was gaining, his senses keyed to either fight or run. He could feel his bones starting to pop, and horns starting to emerge.
Closing his eyes, he started taking slow deep breaths. In for five, hold for 5, release for 5. Continuing his slow breathing, he reached into his pocket and took out a small stone, smoothed by years of constant touch. Jim found that the coolness of his little rock helped to ground him to reality. He could feel the shift stopping, and slowly fading away, as his panic did as well.
As he calmed down, Jim opened his eyes and glanced over at Toby. “Sorry. Pie’s done.”
“No problem, Jimbo.” As Jim stood up, Toby continued. “Should we keep watching this one, or should we switch to something a little less scary?”
Jim paused for a moment. “Yeah, let's keep with this one. I need more practice on not busting out horns and claws whenever I get startled.”
“Fair enough. Especially with Steve constantly breathing down our necks, practice makes sense.”
Nodding in agreement, Jim went to the kitchen and took the pie out of the oven. He set it down on the stove to let it cool.