The 2nd Homicidal Spree of The Deranged Bunnyman (IC)

[Kolmya]

The 2nd Homicidal Spree of The Deranged Bunnyman

Origin Story

The legend has circulated for years in several forms. A version naming a suspect and specific location was posted to a website in the late 1990s by a "Timothy C. Forbes". This version states that in 1904, an asylum prison in Clifton, Virginia was shut down by successful petition of the growing population of residents in Fairfax County. During the transfer of inmates to a new facility, one of the fifteen transports crashed; most, including the driver, were killed, ten escaped. A search party found all but one of them.

During this time, locals allegedly began to find hundreds of cleanly skinned, half-eaten carcasses of rabbits hanging from the trees in the surrounding areas. Another search of the area was ordered, and the police located the remains of Marcus Wallster, left in a similar fashion to the rabbit carcasses hanging in a nearby tree or under a bridge overpass—also known as the "Bunny Man Bridge"—along the railroad tracks at Colchester Road. Officials name the last missing inmate, Douglas J. Grifon, as their suspect and call him "the bunny man".

In this version, officials finally manage to locate Grifon but, during their attempt to apprehend him at the overpass, he nearly escapes before being hit by an oncoming train where the original transport crashed. They say after the train passed, the police heard laughter coming from the site. It is eventually revealed that Grifon was institutionalized for killing his family and children on Easter Sunday.

For years after the "Bunny Man's" death, in the time approaching Halloween, carcasses are said to be found hanging from the overpass and surrounding areas. A figure is reportedly seen by passersby making their way through the one lane bridge tunnel.

-Credit To Wikipedia for Legend

Current Situation, October 30th, 2015,

As Halloween approaches in Fairfax County, Virginia, and the leaves are beginning to die, strange things have been occurring. Local teenagers who have been out drinking late at night, particularly near Colchester Road, have been vanishing into thin air. People report hearing odd occurrences of laughter emanating from the woods, at peculiar hours of the morning. Around this time of year, many people come from all over Virginia to look for the urban legend of the Bunnyman. The situation and amount of people has gotten so bad at the Bunnyman bridge, that the police have set up a checkpoint to prevent people from loitering around the bridge.

Every Halloween, people report alleged sightings of the Bunnyman, just for the sake of scaring people. But this year something is different. There have been no reported sightings of the creature, and many other less obvious odd things have happened. And while everybody is preparing for Halloween, with candy and decorations aplenty, The Bunnyman will be watching...

Clifton, Virginia
5:00 EST
Halloween Night

In the dank, low ceiling-ed, tobacco-smoke filled living room, Daniel lay sprawled out across the entirety of a small red-dotted sofa. With the television playing some horror movie in the background, he twiddled with his Black Iphone anxiously. His mom was sitting back in the main bedroom, smoking like a chimney. He had a date with Sadie, the girl who he had asked out yesterday, Friday. This was his first date with Sadie, and a girl in general. He unlocked the phone's screen, finger instinctively moving to the bottom corner of the screen. He dialed up the number of Sadie, and raised the phone to his ear. However, seconds later the sound of the doorbell ringing drew his attention over to the door. He cancelled the call, and rose to meet the person at the door. After opening both the wooden door and the outer glass door, Daniel saw that it was Sadie at the door. Behind her, bands of costumed kids roved in the grass beside the street, carrying sacks full of candy. He quickly ushered Sadie in, so she could be out of the rapidly chilling wind.

"Sorry about the smell, my mom is a smoker" Daniel exclaimed nervously. For a moment, he lingered in the common room, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "I'll go get my coat, and then we can go." Daniel said. He disappeared into the hallway, passing his parent's room, saying goodbye to his mom, and left his room just as fast as he had entered, grabbing his denim jacket on the way out. He slipped it over his "Trouble" band t-shirt, and said to Sadie, "Shall we go?" It was a very casual date, much to the delight of Daniel, so he didn't have to dress nice. However, he had taken a shower and tried to be as nice as possible. He opened the door for Sadie, unlocking his car in the process, and then they got in. They drove towards the Main Street Pub, an American style diner. It was a very short drive to the diner, and it was so close to Daniel's house they could have walked, but the 30 weather proved otherwise.

"So, what music do you like?" Daniel asked Sadie.

"I mostly listen to Classic rock, and sometimes classical." She responded. They made small talk on the drive there, and were so deep in the discussion of their favorite books, that they had failed to realize they had passed the diner. Daniel laughed it off and then pulled into a parking spot. He went in the restaurant with Sadie and got food and a table. They sat at the booth for nearly Two hours, doing nothing but talking and eating. Eventually, as the setting sun disappeared, and the full moon rose in the night sky, the new couple returned back to Sadie's house.

"Goodbye,"said Daniel, as Sadie left the vehicle, "I had fun." He continued.

"Me too." She responded, a large smile upon her face. Sadie walked back to her house, looking back once before going inside. Daniel sat in his car for several minutes, pondering his cliche thoughts of love. Nobody had ever made him feel this way before. No matter how much he thought this must be like some sort of cheesy rom-com, this is how he felt. While deep in his thoughts, his phone buzzing in his pocket startled him. The text on the screen read 'Michael'. The bright lights of the phone contrasted greatly with the cloud-clad moon.

"Yeah?"Asked Daniel.

Michael responded, "Want to go to Bunnyman Bridge?"

"Let Me Think." A good 30 seconds of silence followed as Daniel considered the offer. Did he really want to go? "Alright." I'll meet you there. Daniel drove away, occasionally gazing at the black sky obstructed by the branches. A feeling of uneasiness overcame Daniel. He Approached the bridge...

[Barboneia]

The parking lot of the convenience store was completely empty, save for Officer Nicholas Howard's Crown Victoria Police Interceptor. The tall, heavy-built police officer stepped out of the store, a coffee clutched tightly in his hands. He was in for, in his opinion, the worst shift you could be put on. He had been assigned to the so called "Bunny Man Bridge" checkpoint at Colchester Road. It was a long shift, too, and he wouldn't be relieved until six in the morning the next day. Literally all he had to do was sit in his car, make sure drivers can go by un-harassed by the idiot teenagers who lingered around the overpass, and occasionally get out of his car to yell at said idiot teenagers.

The officer grumbled at his poor luck as he entered his car. The scanner was putting out the usual chatter, albeit a busier tonight, it seemed. It was Halloween, after all. "This is Officer Dunum, we've got a twenty-one in progress at the old metal factory south of Annandale, requesting assistance, code two." "Roger, Officer Dunum, we've sent a prowl car in the area on Jefferson to assist, ETA thirty seconds, over." "This is car sixty-eight, four-zero-I robbery in progress at Hartfelt's Jewelry, nine four two Kent Avenue, McLean, code three, requesting..." Nicholas sighed as he listened to the scanner for a bit, before starting his car up and driving out of the parking lot.

It seemed eerily calm as he drove down the long, winding road towards the bridge. The road was well paved, and well traveled, as he passed at least a dozen cars on his way to the checkpoint, all of them filled with normal looking, non-intoxicated adult drivers. It didn't seem like anything "spooky" could happen in this area. He slowed his car as the bridge came into sight, and pulled alongside of the road, not quite out of sight, but off the road enough so that people could still drive by. He left his lights on, and took a sip of his coffee. Now he just had to wait. Wait for what, he didn't know. But likely nothing exciting.

[Torrocca]

"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"Are you gonna be here soon?"
"I'm starting the truck right now, actually."
"Alright, cool. Man, I'm so excited for this!"
"Yeah, yeah, it'll be a blast!"
"Alrighty, then - I'll talk to you when you get here! Safe driving, buckaroo!"
"Okay, bye-bye."
"Bye."

John turned off the screen on his smartphone and put it aside, leaning back into the seat of his old, beaten Ford and letting loose an exasperated sigh. "Another of Maria's silly adventures... this ought'a be fun," he thought, taking a small pause to look out the window and wave goodbye to his pa, who stayed home to pass out candy to trick-or-treaters that particular night. He took to the wheel and reversed out of the driveway carefully, and made his way down the road, toward Maria's house.

---

Ding-dong. Maria excitedly jumped from the living room couch and hastily made her way toward the door. She opened it with a huge smile, and managed to utter, "hi, Jo-" before being cut off by a desynchronized choir of children screaming, "TRICK OR TREAT!!!" Frowning slightly, she said, "oh... hi there..." and sheepishly grabbed small handfuls of candy from a nearby bowl, giving some to each child while blushing with embarrassment. "Happy Halloween, miss!" the children yelled joyously, making their way to the sidewalk to plunder the next house on the block. Maria said nothing as she closed the door, sighing and shaking her head as she went back to the couch to catch up on more of the evening news.

Just as she was relaxing herself, the doorbell rang once more. She perked her head up toward the door, and more deliberately went toward it this time around. She peered out the peephole yet... saw nothing. With absolute caution, she slowly opened the door...

"BLAARGH!" a tall figure wearing a demonic mask roared, causing her to scream with fright. "Ahaha!" the person laughed, lifting their mask to reveal their self to Maria. When she saw it was John, she gasped, then slowly, deliberately spun on her heels and fell backward, fainting directly into his arms. Concerned, John shook her lightly, asking, "Maria?" He looked down at her and received no response, and began to lift her into his arms when she suddenly sprung back into consciousness, quickly moving her head and arms toward John's face and yelling, "BOO!" Her friend instinctively recoiled and yelped in surprise, almost dropping his laughing counter-prankster onto the hard wood floor of her own home.

"Hahaha... you should've seen the look on your face, John!" she said, smiling as he lightly gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder. He at first frowned, then chuckled and replied, "yeah, yeah... y'got me. But, heck - you should've seen your face!" She poked him on the cheek, still smiling brightly as she said, "well, yeah! It's not like there's a potential ax-murderer on your doorstep everyday now, is there?" "Mmhmm. Fair point," he said, setting her back onto her feet and giving her a warm, friendly hug that was returned in kind. "Well well well, Mr. Easily-Startled," Maria said after their friendly embrace came to an end, "you ready to get this party rolling?" She walked over to the coffee table in front of the couch, grabbing her phone while he said, "ready as ever, Ms. Scared-of-a-Mask." The two shared a light, warm laugh and exited the house.

---

"So, who do you reckon we'll be seeing beside Donnie and Frankie?" John questioned, very briefly glancing over to Maria to see her texting someone. "Oh, I don't know, amigo," she replied, heavily accentuating her words in a slight mocking manner, "I'm no fortune teller, after all." A slight pause filled the air, and she broke it seconds later by saying, "well... Jenny said she'd probably show up, too." John shrugged as he made a left turn, saying, "well, the more the merrier, I suppose." "You got that right, brother," Maria responded, tapping away at letters on the screen of her phone. "Where exactly are we going, anyway?" "Well... I'm no particular expert when it comes to navigating, but, uh... we're supposed to be going straight to the bridge and create a small diversion so that the friendly neighborhood dynamic duo, and whoever they're dragging along, can sneak into the area nearby - y'know, where we're camping." "Ooh, tactical! I like it," Maria replied, grinning.

After another brief silence that was spent enjoying the evening scenery, Maria piped up and asked, "so... you think we'll see any bears?" "Oh, definitely the biggest and scariest of them!" "Wait... really?" "Nah... they're, like, way up in Alaska or someplace. There might be smaller, cuddlier bears, though. And bats." "Ooh, bats?! I've always wanted a pet bat!" Maria paused, then gave a mischievous grin to John, saying, "we should totally try and catch one! We could name it... Bat-Bat!" John raised an eyebrow, and asked in a sarcastic manner, "Bat-Bat?" "Well, you try thinking up a good name," Maria replied, folding her arms over her chest and giving John a slight glare. "Uh... how about... Sir Flap Flap of Batville?" "Really?" "What? It's a cutesy little name!" "Yeah, but - I mean, Bat-Bat, though." "... Okay, I'll give you that. We're here, by the way," John replied, bringing the truck to a halt about fifty meters from the bridge.

"Here, text Don real fast and see if we should start our little scheme now or not," John said, producing his phone from his pocket and handing it to Maria. She merrily texted away, muttering, "all this trick-or-treating really gets you in the mood to just... type... y'know?" "Mmhmm," John muttered, listening to the small ding of his phone. "Well, he said we should totally get on with it, and that he's not too far from here with everything we need," Maria replied, handing John's phone back to him. "Well, alright then," he said, slowly easing the truck toward the checkpoint at the bridge.

[Beiarusia]

Blake & Bianca Tallow

---

“I think we’re lost.”

Blake glanced over to her twin sister, pouting at the accusation that called into question her impeccable sense of direction. Bunnyman Bridge wasn’t that far from home, fifteen miles at the most, and the girl was quite faithful in her ability to read a map on Google. After all, it literally drew a line to be followed. Of course things would be much simpler, and faster, if they had a car, but being that they were too young for even a learner’s permit they’d had to walk, and though Blake would never admit to fault there was a slight possibility, maybe, that a wrong turn had been made at some point. Regardless the girl felt that this street would lead them to the right path and marched onwards rather confidently.

Bianca wasn’t as sure. “We’re heading east.”

“Are you sure?”

“The sun sets in the-”

“West,” Blake finished. “I know, but what are you…” She paused to look up at the still blue sky, finding that the sun was already beginning to dip down towards the horizon in the direction opposite of where they were going. The road was taking them east when they needed to head south. “This way’s a shortcut.”

“Is it?”

Blake stuck out her tongue and Bianca returned the gesture. The two continued on.

The twins, Blake and Bianca, held an odd fascination with all things strange and unexplained, being the kind to not only enjoy ghost stories and urban legends but to also try to experience the circumstance first hand. Not that they have had much success. Internet stories were often just that: stories. The supernatural very well could exist, or maybe not, but most definitely there was a reason as to why things happened, and sometimes that reason couldn’t be explained using rational thought. Take bigfoot or mothman or any number of strange happenings and occurrences. Most intriguing were those with written fact to support such wondrous claims. Stories that actually held some grain of truth. The Bunnyman was one such story. The twins had learned of the Bunnyman shortly after moving to Oakton, but until now had not had the chance to make the pilgrimage to the supposedly haunted bridge due to their foster mother wanting to parade them around on Halloween like a couple of Good Samaritan trophies. The two girls could have gone any other day but the holiday was important to them. It would be on Halloween or it wouldn’t be at all. But alas…

“Okay, maybe we’re lost,” Blake admitted with some reluctance.

“Told you so.”

“You’re not really helping.”

“I am. I’m telling you that we’re lost.”

They had gotten on a south-facing road but still had no clue as to where they were, and to make matters worse they had forgotten their cellphones at home. They were in the creek without a paddle.

“We could try asking someone?” Bianca suggested.

Blake motioned to the empty street around them. “Like who?”

“There’ll be a car eventually. Then we can-”

“Ask for directions.” The older of the two twins sighed. They had wanted so badly to see the bridge, but now they may not even make it. There was also the dilemma on getting home but that wasn’t as important just now. “Fine. We’ll ask the next car.”

The twins definitely stood out enough to grab a driver’s attention. Both wore matching black hoodies and pleated skirts over dark colored leggings and boots. They were identical down to their socks and underwear. Standing side by side on the side of the road was enough to give anyone passing by a double take. Blake considering thrusting out her thumb like a hitchhiker but found her hand occupied as Bianca took hold of it. The two hopefully wouldn’t have to wait long.

[Erhialam]

"This is Log Number One for October 15th, and the time is..." Keleren glanced down at her watch. "...5:05 P.M. Eastern Time. The outside temperature is approximately 6 degrees Celsius."

She glanced out of the car window out onto the dark stretch of road leading to the overpass. "I'm in my car, a little ways off the road and a quarter mile from the site of reported paranormal activity." Opening the manila file on her lap reading BM Notes, she scanned the top page. "I'm here to investigate claims of possible supernatural activity regarding an entity known as 'the Bunnyman'."

The faint words of a Fleet Foxes song drifted from the radio. Kel flicked the dial all the way down to zero. Robin Pecknold's voice was a pleasure to listen to, but she didn't want anything to bleed onto the recording.

"The facts of this legend were difficult to parse out," she continued. "As I've mentioned in my research notes, the most complete narrative of the legend, concerning a case in 1904, is likely false. What I can say is that there were two confirmed incidents in October of 1970 of encounters with an aggressive man dressed as a rabbit." Most would have snickered at the line, but Kel continued to speak evenly into the digital recorder.

"Over 50 people reported sightings of the man at the time, but the cases were eventually closed due to lack of evidence. I can say nothing else for certain. Paranormal activity in the area of what the locals call 'Bunnyman Bridge' has been reported around Halloween for a number of years since, with claims ranging from faint laughter being heard to full apparitions of the Bunnyman being seen in the tunnel below the bridge. Those who subscribe to the Grifon story claim that he was killed by an oncoming train while avoiding the authorities, and that it is his ghost being spotted."

"I'm honestly not sure what to expect," Keleren admitted. "There are so few consistent facts available, and even the supernatural reports vary. If there's any truth to the matter, my goal is to get closer to it tonight. This is Keleren Lorraine Hennessy. End of Log Number One."

With that, she turned off the recording device and shoved it into her backpack along with a notepad, several high-sensitivity recording devices, a flashlight, and an electromagnetic meter, among other investigatory equipment. Flipping the key from the ignition, she slid the pack onto her back and began her quarter-mile trek to the bridge.

Keleren understood why there were police posted at the bridge. The teenagers who often loitered there on Halloween dares were in possible danger, given that the train lines still operated. At the same time, she was frustrated, knowing that a police presence would likely impede her research. She hoped that her university teaching credentials might give her an ounce of legitimacy in their eyes. Most of her colleagues saw her paranormal investigations as a waste of time and talent. A few begrudgingly applauded her use of scientific theory in an area of study that was so subjective. It was clear to them that she wasn't a complete loon, but could she convince the police of that?

She was glad, in a way, for the police. The man in 1970 had actually threatened the two couples that had been driving in the area with a hatchet, and though it was 45 years ago, there was always the distinct possibility that some other person would be inspired by the Bunnyman legend and behave similarly.

She could see the lights of the police cars ahead as she neared the bridge, and tried to think of the best way to approach them.

[Kaidou]

4:56pm

The rooftop gym of the hotel was vacant save for the chirpy, long haired, lean, bespectacled Chinese-Japanese-American undergraduate who had checked in some days ago with his friend, the chunky, muscular redhead with the sexy moustache, and taken one of the small, double-bed rooms on the ground floor. Four out of nine days had already elapsed, and every one of those four days, he was seen at the gym.

Of course, that was the usual, unbreakable routine for Andrew Lin Jia Kang. Though his schedule (outside of time spent in classes, of course) was generally rubbery, there was always one thing which he never failed to do; at 4pm every day, Andrew would sign in to the gym, and at 5pm, he would sign out. Time zones were moot.

It was more a habit than anything else. A good habit.

This day, however, Andrew felt more tired than usual. He hadn't had a particularly late night, and yet… With each step he took on the treadmill, his legs felt like they were vibrating straight to the bone, right through the muscles and the skin. His lungs felt like they were being filled with burning liquor, and his heart, which had been brutal in the past, now felt more like a plump ball of pulsating pudding. Perhaps he had pushed himself too hard? Perhaps he had burned himself out in the previous three days?

In any case, Andrew thought to himself, it was almost 6pm already. Might as well sign out three minutes earlier, and break routine tomorrow.

With a heavy sigh, Andrew hopped off the treadmill, wiped his face with one of the complimentary towels (which he later threw into the laundry bin outside), and placed a second signature in the guestbook for the day. The rays of the weakening sun penetrated the windows of the slightly musty, air-conditioned corridors, splashing the walls with dancing rays of luminous gold. Stepping into the little cube of an elevator, Andrew compressed the "G" button with his elbow ("My elbows don't go near my food") and leaned on the railing.

Room service would be a welcome change, especially after four days of touring the restaurants. The shabu shabu place down the street wasn't very authentic (though tasty, nonetheless), and the kebab place was plain greasy. Could that have explained his bad performance at the gym earlier? Whatever it was, room service looked quite healthy, and wasn't terribly expensive, at least, compared to other room service menus elsewhere. Room service was expensive regardless of where one went.

"Hello", came a voice from inside the room.

The first thing Andrew saw when the door opened was his red headed holiday companion draped on the armchair like a blanket, holding up a Russian language book with only one hand ("Один день Ивана Денисовича", the title read) and reading it in a very uncomfortable position on the chair.

"I'm gonna order room service", said Andrew, taking a huge gulp of water from a bottle of mineral water and throwing his shirt on top of a laundry bag. He took a nicely folded, excessively fluffy towel from a stack on his bed (placed there by the chambermaid) and went into the bathroom.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing. If you're going for another walk outside, then I'll help you order."

Andrew smiled back and close the door behind him.

…

5:08pm

The air was crisp and cool outside. The trees that lined the streets had been slathered with blotches of red and gold, colours that were further emphasised by the final rays of light from the gradually fading sun. The streets were draped by almost endless carpets of fallen leaves, the sound of a lone groundskeeper sweeping the patches aside adding a pleasant, countryside ambience to the whole atmosphere.

With his hands thrust deep into his pockets, Andrew slowly and leisurely strolled around the suburbs near his hotel, absorbing the sights around him, imprinting them in his memory. It wasn't a stunning or mystifying landscape by any shot, but it was very much comfortable and generally gratifying, especially considering the hectic university lifestyle that he had left behind four days ago, and which he would eventually return to, in five days time. The final exams were just round the corner; cramming would have to commence with full throttle the moment he got home.

For now, Andrew decided, he would savour the remaining five days of well earned vacation. No thinking of work. No thinking of lexicons or voiced and voiceless "th" sounds or regional dialects or anything of that sort. When it was time to work, work he did. When it was time to rest and relax… that was exactly what he would do.

This town intrigued him.

…

Night

Room service wasn't quite like how he expected it to be, but it was still pretty decent nonetheless. For Andrew, James had ordered grilled salmon steaks with boiled potatoes, long beans, and a creamy, cheesy, Swedish sauce which Andrew could never remember the name of for the life of it. For himself, he had ordered meatballs and spaghetti.

"How many calories?" Andrew asked jokingly, smirking childishly.

"Over 9000!" replied James, chuckling along as he cracked open the cap of a bottle of A&W root beer. Andrew cringed, to which James replied with an extended ring finger, as a naughty, schoolboy euphemism for the adjacent appendage.

"This town is pretty nice", said Andrew tersely, as he skewered a long bean with a fork, stirred it in the sauce, and chewed it up.

"Pretty cool legends surrounding it", said James, gulping down the root beer.

"Oh?"

"I did quite a fair bit of research on this place", he said, taking out his ancient iPhone 2 and thumbing through it, before showing Andrew a page on a mock Wikipedia site. "There's apparently a serial killer who has a bunny fetish."

Andrew swallowed the long bean and proceeded to ravenously cut apart the pink hunk on his plate.

"Bunny fetish?" he repeated, his expression betraying his surprise.

"Yep", said James. "This guy, they call him the Bunnyman. He likes to skin bunnies every time he kills a person, or something along those lines. Funny, how its Halloween now; I heard someone talk 'bout it in the lobby. One of the other guests, I think."

"What wonderful imaginations", said Andrew, grinning childishly and moving a forkful of grilled salmon flakes closer to his mouth.

"Wanna go walk around a bit later?"

"Why not? Just pray he doesn't come after you."

"Ha! Ha! Ha!"

…

[Krytonus]

Marcus Brady
Marcus was getting tired of roads. He tapped his finger absent-mindedly against the wheel of the old red Volkswagen he had rented for the week. Kenny Loggins sang on from somewhere behind him. This car was far too old to have Bluetooth, so he has brought a wireless speaker with him which was connected to his phone (which was quickly running out of battery.) It felt like he'd been driving forever.

It appeared that the Gods of the road had been merciful on Marcus on this day, as he passed a sign welcoming him to the town of Clifton. He let out a sigh and leaned back in his seat.

According to his watch, it was 4:56, which meant he had been on the road for roughly eleven hours. That was too long for Marcus. However, seeing the sign had reinvigorated him, and he found himself driving with a renewed excitement. Bunnyman Bridge. Were the legends true?

Probably not.

But that wasn't going to stop Marcus now. Kenny Loggins finished belting out lyrics and the speaker played the next song: Short Change Hero, by The Heavy. Marcus whooped with satisfaction, tapping the wheel in tune and mouthing the words. If anybody were to look into Marcus's car right about now, they would probably think Marcus had lost his mind. The sun was just setting, sinking low over the horizon. The entire world seemed to be bathed in warm orange light. It was a pretty nice view.

As he drove closer to his destination, Marcus pulled out his phone, thumbing open Google Maps with one hand on the wheel. He had entered his destination earlier that day, so all he needed to do was make sure he was going in the right direction. It was almost entirely straight on, with just two turns. Easy.

Marcus cursed as he missed the first turn while checking his phone. He sighed, slowing the van and doing a quick (and illegal) U turn, driving back to the turn and this time going the right way. Satisfied he could probably manage the rest, he locked his phone and tossed it onto the cracked leather of the passenger seat.

He was entering suburbs now. Pretty standard white-picket communities, with nice small houses decorated with pumpkins and scarcecrows galore. He slowed down to a much more acceptable speed so as to not run over any children, who were running free-range all over the shop. His van grumbled in that unreliable am-I-gonna-stall way Marcus had grown worryingly familiar with. He flipped on the old headlights, which cast a dim light on the tarmac ahead.

It was Halloween, all right. Costumes kids wandered door to door, collecting treats and scaring each other. Marcus nodded in silent appreciation to a group of kids dressed as all of the Avengers. He shook his head in silent disapproval at a group of minions. A few parents scowled at him from the street. How dare he, a teenager driving some dirty old van drive through their suburb, dirtying it with his anti-establishment agenda and scruffy hair? He was probably a communist, and smoked marijuana behind supermarkets.

Marcus waved at them cheerfully.

As he edged out of the area, the roads became less full of children and Halloween cheer. He was close to the bridge now, probably only about ten minutes away. Marcus would enjoy being able to stretch his legs. As he neared his destinaction, he raised an eyebrow as he spotted two girls on the side of the road trying to hitchhike. He slowed down. Maybe he should pick them up. He considered it silently.

"I want to break free," sang Freddy Mercury, which really wasn't helpful at all.

"I want to breeak free!" he repeated.

"Shut up." muttered Marcus and pulled over. He waved at the girls, pulling down the window.

"You girls realise you're hitchhiking on Halloween. That's like, probably the plot of more than a few horror films," he laughed, smiling warmly. Freddie Mercury continued to complain about wanting to break free somewhere in the background. "Where to?"

[Beiarusia]

Blake & Bianca Tallow

---

“No one’s gonna stop,” said Blake. They had been waiting for maybe five minutes now. The elder twin would much rather spend the time bumbling ahead in the vain hope that they were on the right path, but the younger wanted to wait just a bit longer, and the younger usually won out in these matters. But that wouldn’t stop the elder from complaining. “We’re wasting time. It’s gonna be dark soon so we should-”

“Car.”

“Car? That’s not what I was gonna say.”

“No, here comes a car.” Bianca was pointing back to where they had come from and, true enough, there was a VW van rolling down the road. The driver saw them and came to a stop.

"You girls realise you're hitchhiking on Halloween. That's like, probably the plot of more than a few horror films. Where to?"

The twins walked over and looked in through the window. The driver was a curly haired kid not much older than they were, jamming to Queen and looking the sort to drive a van like this, which was only marginally better than a white Econoline. Not in immediate fear of being tempted by free candy, Blake said, “We're heading for the Bunnyman Bridge. Do you know it?”

[Krytonus]

Not in immediate fear of being tempted by free candy, Blake said, “We're heading for the Bunnyman Bridge. Do you know it?”

Marcus raised an eyebrow at the kids. They couldn't have been older than middle schoolers, and even more strange, they seemed to be identical, down to their shoes. Still, who was Marcus to judge, anyway?

The strangest thing was where they were going.

"Know it? I'm heading there myself! Here, hop in," he said, clicking open the passenger door and scooping up his phone. "Uh, there's only room for one of you up here, so one of you'll have to sit in the back." He pointed his thumb over his shoulder to the back of the van. It had been converted into a sort of strange living quarters, an odd hodge-podge of DIY and plastic. Lining one side was a small gas cooker and sink, with a few cupboards full of utensils screwed to the roof. A kettle was strapped to the wall, and a few tea bags had spilled onto the floor. A few dirty plates were sitting in the sink. On the other side was a small bed with a faded blue duvet. Just in front of that, set into the side of the van was a little couch, made of cracked red leather. An old throw pillow sat on the left. A pair of seatbelts were strangely attached, added almost as an afterthought. In what little space was left was a laptop, plugged into a portable charger and humming loudly, the Bluetooth speaker (still blaring Queen's I Want to Break Free) and in the middle of it all sat Marcus's suitcase, which was still open. As single sock hung over the edge of it, and a crumpled t-shirt sat on the floor. It smelled vaguely of body-spray. The whole "room" was accented with rust and various unknown stains, which Marcus usually pretended didn't exist. Proudly bolted to the door was a little sign that read "Euphoria Van Hire- Start Your Adventure in Style and Comfort!". The edge of the sign had been eroded away, and the entire thing was faded and scraped.

"So, you guys hoping to spot a glimpse of the Bunnyman himself then?" Marcus asked as he pulled out onto the road. The Volkswagen sputtered in defiance, but Marcus ignored it, obviously not worried.

[Beiarusia]

Blake & Bianca Tallow

---

"Know it? I'm heading there myself! Here, hop in. Uh, there's only room for one of you up here, so one of you'll have to sit in the back."

Blake glanced over to her sister. Neither were too keen on accepting a ride, but the kid was near their age and he didn’t seem the type to kidnap hitchhikers. Plus he was going to exactly where they were headed. It couldn’t be a more perfect change of luck. And if he did try anything, well, it was two against one, and Blake was confident that she and her sister could kick their way out of any trouble. “We’ll take the back.”

The two waltzed around to the rear of the van and entered through the back hatch, stepping into what seemed a mobile studio apartment, though one of poor quality. New Jersey as opposed to New York. It could almost be homey if not for the mess and the unidentifiable stains that could be anything from the benign to the disgusting. Closing the door behind them, the twins took to the red leather sofa that looked marginally out of place, setting the open suitcase on the carpeted floor – not shag carpet to Bianca’s mild disappointment – beside the Bluetooth stereo and somehow managing to buckle themselves into the strange arrangement. The air was stale and smelled thickly of bodyspray. They had only just taken their seats when the teenager pulled back onto the road.

"So, you guys hoping to spot a glimpse of the Bunnyman himself then?"

“Something like that,” Blake answered, still examining the van with a slight scowl.

Bianca was more thorough with her explanation. “We think there’s some truth to the legend. Rumors don’t just start without a reason to, and even if there’s nothing-”

“We’d like to see for ourselves,” Blake finished automatically. “It could be ghost story-”

“Or it could be something.”

The song by Queen ended and another began.

[Chicago Heights]

4:39 PM
 Mitch never did like Halloween, even when he was a little kid. Maybe it was because he hated chocolate, or maybe it was the fact that kids would trample each other just to get first dibs on the Twix, Butterfinger, or whatever the hell was being given out. But one thing was for sure: He hated this one. He had recently heard about teens dissapearing, and it was no rumor; he noticed that said teens had not been going to school for the past few days. It was probably some kidnapper or rapist taking them, it couldn't be that Bunnyman, he was just a myth. Even if he was real, he'd be dead by now... right?

"Hey Mitch!" Mitch darted his head towards the suprising voice; it was Noah with that stupid smirk on his face.
"Huh?" Mitch mumbled.
"You know that bridge, right?"
Mitch nodded.
"Well, since you seem to have nothing to do, and dad is gone for the week, I dare you to spend the rest of the night under that bridge."
Mitch scowled, "Ha! No."
"I'll give you 20 bucks."
Mitch stayed silent.
"Fifty?"
"No."
"Fine then..." Noah began walking away, "Pussy."
Mitch always tried to stay modest and calm, but when it came to Noah, he could ram him like a train. And that's what he did.
Mitch got up from the chair and pushed Noah aside, "You better have the money ready." And he rushed out the door slamming it. Outside he prayed for many things, too many to list.

5:04 PM
Mitch approached the bridge and saw the lights of many cars, including Officer Howard's car. Mitch smiled at Howard and waved.

[Russian people of america]

Jack sat alone in his old pickup truck. It was Halloween night, his favorite time of the year. Not that he'd be spending this one with a tub of ice cream, a warm blanket and a horror movie marathon. No this time he had other plans. He was relatively new to this town, Clifton Virginia. When he was younger he'd explored the local myth's around his neighborhood. But this was a new area, a new town with it's own urban legend's. One of these urban legend's was the legend of the infamous Bunnyman. He'd been eager to explore he myth ever since he'd first heard about it. Of course it was utterly bizarre, and he had poured over the legend for several month's. Though everyone seemed to know the myth no one could provide any real evidence. Those who claimed they had a newspaper clipping or picture typically looked like they could be the bunnyman themselves. He'd avoided them and instead he'd decided that he'd just visit the site himself. He started up the vehicle, allowing it to purr for a moment before it's engine started up and gave the vehicle life. It drifted forward and he left the parking lot of his new home. Bunnyman bridge, he'd visited it once or twice in the daylight, but that was only for a few moment's both time's. Something about the area just seemed to give off bad vibe's. But it was Halloween! He had to see it now, just one more time before he could dismiss it as just another dumb joke parent's told their kid's to stop them venturing out at night,

Maybe he'd taken a wrong turn, or went down the wrong road. Either way Jack was lost. He reached for his phone on the dashboard. His finger screwed with the power button for a few second's before he tossed it back with a frustrated sigh. Dead of course, that was just his luck. Lost with an almost empty tank of gas and no cell phone. Then his luck seemed to change as he noticed a familiar sign. Turning left he started down another road, one that was far more familiar. Maybe he'd still get a chance to see the bridge before Halloween ended. Along the way he passed a particular van, noticing several kid's getting inside. He watched them in his mirror for a moment before deciding it was none of his business. That had been one of the first vehicles he'd seen since he'd left town. It was more than a little eerie tonight, a gentle fog even seemed to be settling in. He paid it no attention and continued towards the old bridge.

[Barboneia]

Nicholas sat in his Crown Victoria, listening to his scanner once more. "We've got a two seven I in progress at Burgundy and Lent, Burgundy and Lent, West Falls Church, any unit to handle, code three, identify." "This is Car twenty-nine, reporting the forty-four from Five Forks now on Interstate 395, in pursuit, requesting assistance, over." Yeesh, he thought. There's even more going on tonight than normal. I wouldn't think that it being Halloween would make a difference. He took another sip of his coffee, before rolling down his window. A cool autumn breeze swept through his vehicle, knocking a loose lease traffic report under the passenger side seat. He didn't seem to notice it, however, as he let out a content sigh.

Glancing out the windshield, Nicholas noticed a familiar face highlighted by his car's headlights. It was Mitch, Charles' kid. While Nicholas didn't go to church that often anymore, when he did he met Charles Morenchy, a kind man who's wife tragically died during child birth. Nicholas always felt sorry for the single father, having to raise three kids on his own, and although he seemed a bit... Obsessed with God, He was a great guy. Charles, in turn, introduced Nicholas to his kids, who all seemed good to him. He thought Mitch was better than the other two, though, as he never seemed to get in trouble.

Nicholas smiled back at the teen as he saw him smile and wave to him. The broad police officer rolled up his window and stepped out of the car, slamming the door shut. He approached Mitch with a smile on his face. "Hey, Mitchell! I haven't seen you in a while! Not since Easter, right? How've you been? How's your father?"

[Chicago Heights]

Mitch always liked Officer Howard, he was, to say the least, a nice man. Mitch had no clue how his father met him, but he really didn't care. Howard always treated Mitch better than his siblings, which he was used to, but he knew he really didn't like Noah, who was now a 19 year-old who had been arrested multiple times for possession of Marijuana, and Noah was an asshole anyway. Howard was different from the other police men in Fairfax, though, he was compassionate, friendly, and more of a family man. Mitch really admired the man.

"It has been a long time, hasn't it? I've been alright, Noah has been bugging me, though, and Dad has been on a business trip back in Illinois, checking up on the church..." He frowned "...and Mom. Anyway, how have you been? What brings you to Clifton, an assignment?"

[Krytonus]

Blake & Bianca Tallow

---

"Know it? I'm heading there myself! Here, hop in. Uh, there's only room for one of you up here, so one of you'll have to sit in the back."

“It could be ghost story-”

“Or it could be something.”

The song by Queen ended and another began.

Marcus nodded from behind the wheel.

"I'm the same. Whole reason I'm in Clifton. See, I'm on a little road trip, and when I found out I'd be passing by Fairfax on Halloween, I knew I had to go. I'm even planning on staying the night next to the bridge in the van. Gonna be fun." he declared, clenching a fist dramatically. Africa by Toto was now playing, and as he drove on, Marcus mouthed the words, moving to the beat.

Marcus's phone suddenly spoke up.

"At the next exit, make a left."

"Will do, Google baby." Marcus replied, slowing the old van down, easing into the turn. Ahead loomed their destination.

Bunnyman bridge.

Marcus whistled. A cop car was parked outside, the lights flashing but no sirens.

"Huh," Marcus noted. "They even got the police out here? Neat."

He stopped the van, pulling over to the curb behind a pick-up. The police officer was chatting with the driver. Marcus dimmed the lights and sat back. He turned to look back at the two girls.

"Anybody asks, I'm dropping you guys home. Don't mention wanting to hang out at the bridge, or he'll just tell us all to piss off." He turned back to the front, checking his gas. Still had a good third of his tank left.

"Oh, almost forgot. I'm Marcus. Nice to meet you both." He glanced at them through the front mirror.

[Torrocca]

"Huh... looks like Officer Friendly is already distracted," John said, pointing out the police officer talking to some kid that had approached his squad car. "Well well well," Maria muttered, turning her attention to the officer, "looks like we can just head straight to our little camp then." "Yyyup," John replied, carefully driving the car past the patrol care and under the bridge. "I suppose we should tell Donnie that we're on our way, eh?" "Yeah, yeah... give me your phone, chico - I'll message him," Maria said, putting her hand out to receive John's phone. He took it from his pocket and she graciously accepted it, and sent the message shortly after.

John paid her no mind as she looked through his phone some more - the two of them were the least secretive out of all their friends, it'd seemed. Neither minded if the other was doing that sort of stuff. "Mmm hmm hmm... what's this? Old eighth grade photo?" Maria inquired, pointing out a picture of the two of them. "Oh, uh... yeah. Kept it for the memories," John said, smiling to her. He stopped when she started laughing, saying between laughs or breaths of air, "oh my GOSH! We were so cringy then! All that acne and the braces and my hideously huge glasses! Haha!" John shrugged his shoulders and said, "hey - I thought they were cute." "About as cute as that camo suit you wore?" "I was being unique!" "Heh... if that's what they call it these days." "I'm sure someone does." "Beside you, dummy?" "Weeeeell... probably. I dunno. I'm just glad I got outta that stupid phase sooner rather than later." John smirked, then remarked, "well... 'least it was better than that one purse you used to carry around." "Ugh... don't remind me of that disgusting thing."

---

"He-hey, Donno! Where the hell are they?" Frankie said from the car, clasping his glove-covered hands together and rubbing them. "It's fuckin' freezin' here!" "Hey, maybe if you'd help with this Goddamn campfire, you wouldn't be getting a case of blue balls, Franko!" Donnie replied bitterly, almost snarling back at the car from the freezing campfire. "Hey, hey - could y'all chill? Maybe? Please? For me?" Jenny muttered from inside the car, rubbing her shoulders for warmth. "You heard her, Don! Ain't no way to talk 'round a lady!" An audible slap was heard from the car, a mere few seconds before the distant hum of an engine could be heard. "Hey, I think they're almost here," Frankie hollered, striking a match alight and throwing it onto the well-crafted fireplace. It quickly ignited, and the humming engine grew louder as it approached.

"Well well well, look who finally decided to show up," Donnie said, giving a warm smile to John and Maria as they exited the beaten Ford. "Well, we'd have made a grander entrance, your majesty," John said sarcastically, giving a slight bow for effect, "but someone decided to use us as a diversion." "Hey, now - y'all said the guy was distracted already," Donnie replied, feigning offense to John's claims, "so it definitely ain't my fault." After a brief moment of silence, Donnie said in a much friendlier tone, "ah, shucks! Let's go on over to the fireplace! Frankie and Jenny are thrilled as hell about tonight!"

[Beiarusia]

Blake & Bianca Tallow

---

It didn’t take long to find the bridge. A few turns and they were practically there, much to the annoyance of Blake who felt certain of her sense of direction. An officer was parked ahead, most likely to keep an eye on the pesky teenagers who, unlike the twins and their genuine interest, had come to make trouble. The driver of the van pulled off the road and parked behind a pickup well enough away from the officer’s patrol car. Killing the lights he turned to look at the girls.

"Anybody asks, I'm dropping you guys home. Don't mention wanting to hang out at the bridge, or he'll just tell us all to piss off. Oh, almost forgot. I'm Marcus. Nice to meet you both."

“Blake-”

“And Bianca,” the twins said one after the other.

The elder twin looked pass Marcus and through the front windshield to the officer and the person he was speaking to. Aside from those two there weren’t that many people. “There’s won’t be that many people, right? Too many people-”

“And we may miss something.” Bianca looked over to Marcus. “Did you come all this way just to see the bridge?”

[Kolmya]

[align=] The Bridge[/align]

The Bunnyman Bridge came into full view as Daniel rounded the extremely curvaceous road. The ominous structure literally loomed over the road, barren tree limbs creeping toward the tunnel. The fact that a relatively well known urban legend had started here was no surprise to him, owing to the overall spookiness of the place. What caught him off guard however, was the small line of cars that had started to pile up, and the flashing blue and red lights of a police car. Ah, Daniel remembered, to prevent teenagers and other kids from fucking around at Bunnyman Bridge, the Police would do regular sweeps through the area, and on Halloween in particular, the time the legend occurred, they would set up a checkpoint near the bridge.

He pulled off into the grass on the side of the road, reaching down into the cup holder to grab his phone. Daniel dialed in Michael's phone number and waited a couple of seconds for a response.

"Hey, whats up?" Michael simply responded to the call.

"Hey, I forgot that the police were setting up a checkpoint." explained Daniel. He peered through the descending darkness to try and discern who the police officer there was.

"Oh, well I'm on the other side of the bridge."said Michael.

"What excuse should I make to get through?" inquired Daniel.

"Uh, just say you're going home or something, whatever cop's there won't know you." answered Michael.

"Ah, oh well, I'll just try and get through." finished Daniel. They both said their goodbyes, and then Daniel worked his way back on to the road. He joined the stationary line of cars piled up, and then proceeded to gaze into the night sky, lost in his own thoughts and the music on the radio. However, minutes later, after the line had not moved forward at all, Daniel craned his neck out of his window to see what was going on. The cop who was at the checkpoint this night was chatting with one of the people in their car. But as the line finally moved, he turned down the music...

[Barboneia]

"Well, the Lieutenant in McLean sent me here to the so called 'checkpoint', but all I have to do is basically make sure none of the teens that show up here cause any trouble. I'm in for a long night, I'm expecting. I would've preferred a regular patrol or even a desk job for this evening, but instead I'm stuck here, in the middle of nowhere." Nicholas sighed, watching a van pull up to the side of the road not far from the bridge. He shook his head, before looking back at Mitch. "And why are you here, huh? You're not planning on causing trouble, are you, Mitch?" He gave a grin, when suddenly his radio beeped, followed by a rather distressed sounding dispatcher.

"The forty-six W on Hope Drive, Bailey's Crossroads has just been escalated to a thirty-six and a thirteen, we have an officer down, repeat, officer down, any available units, code three, I repeat, code three. Suspect last seen heading onto Stafferd Avenue. Subject is armed and incredibly dangerous, exercise extreme caution..."

Nicholas shook his head, listening. "I wonder who got-" Nicholas suddenly stopped talking as he heard a car horn beep. Oh right. He had to periodically stop some vehicles to ask what they were doing, where they were going, etcetera. He glanced at Mitch. "Hey, bud, you need to go. Or at least, stay out of the way, alright? I'll see you later, maybe. If not, say hello to your father for me, when you see him again."

Nicholas sighed, and signaled for the nearest car to drive forward and then stop. He approached them, arms folded. "May I ask where you're going tonight?"

[Chicago Heights]

"Well they had to put someone out here. It is Halloween, the other kids tend to do rather unecessary things over here at the bridge, and with the dissapearances and all..." he paused. "I wont lie, Im here because Noah dared me to, he said he'd pay me, and you know me, I'm not one to mess around, so no worries." His voice was raised to be heard or the honking of car horns and the radio, which Mitch frowned at when the message was over. "Maybe it's the ghost of the Bunnyman. Ooooooh! But that does seriously sound bad, pray that no one else will be harmed." He looked back at the cars, "You mind if I stay with you for the night, Officer Howard? I could help you direct traffic, if that's okay."

[New Grestin]

Clifton, Virginia | 8:45 AM

In the northernmost tip of Virginia, between the 28 and the 286, there was little town called Clifton. With less than a thousand people, it was the definition of a small town, the kind that peppered the US between the hundreds of miles of metropolis and in-fill. Barely a stone's throw from Washington, it was a place many travelers saw, and Michelle witnessed a good portion of those travelers. In a small, brick and mortar diner on the main street, people from around town and beyond came for cheap, shoddily made pancakes and old coffee. Not like anyone really cared, of course. The diner's continued existence could be more attributed to it's convenience than it's quality. She sighed, watching over the people that milled about.

A trucker messily tore at an omelette, a businessman daintily sipped at his coffee, and all manner of others sat about, each eating whatever mediocre food they'd purchased. Every so often she'd be drug away to refill someone's coffee, or maybe to take a new order, but all in all, Michelle found herself bored. The manager, a stocky old man, had repeatedly berated her for using her phone on shift, and she wasn't keen on going back to his office again. The yelling was the easy part; the sitting through his stories about Korea and "kids these days" wasn't.

If nothing else, it was Halloween. She could revel in that fact. It was one of the few holidays where you weren't obligated to give gifts or thank people for slaughtering Indians. You could just dress up in a goody costume and eat candy. She could, at the very least, appreciate that fact. That wasn't why she was excited, though. Tonight was the night. She was finally going to go through with it. Everything was planned to a tee.

A man in the corner booth raised his hand, facing her, and she quickly stepped over to him. He was a short, frumpy looking man in a long coat, his face covered in scruff. There was something odd about him as he slid his mug over to her. She snatched it up and, just as she was turning to walk away, his gruff voice cut into the air between them.

"Have we met before, hon?"

She swiveled her head, brushing a tuft of dirty brown hair from her eye as she spoke.

"Uh, no. We haven't."

He shot her a strange look, then turned his attentions to the mug in her hands.

"Two creams, no sugar."
"Right."

Visibly uncomfortable, she traipsed back to the kitchen. The man did look somewhat familiar, she knew that, but her mind couldn't quite place why. Someone she had seen before? Someone from around town? She hadn't met that many people from around, despite living there for six months. Her mind was elsewhere as she poured the coffee, and as she stepped out into the diner proper, she sighed. The man was gone. Irritated, she stomped over to the table, only to find a crisp twenty waiting for her, along with the check. A message was written in black pen on it.

Keep the change.

Even in spite of the money, something turned in her gut. Something was off about the man, she knew that much, and she quietly snatched up the money. A new sense of unease filled her as she returned to the kitchen. Maybe someone was on to her, she thought. Maybe she needed to hold off, wait a few more weeks. The last thing she wanted was for this to be messy, but as she shoved the change into her pocket, she knew that there wouldn't be a better night. Too much effort had been spent, too much time expended preparing, for all of it to go to waste on simple nerves.

Michelle checked her watch.

Just a few more hours.

---

The Bunnyman Bridge | 4:55 PM

There was a lot of history around this place, she knew that much. She'd read the legends, the stories about this place. Murder and death were not uncommon, and there was even a tale about escaped mental patients. Even with all her planning, she was still unnerved. It was the woods. The endless forest seemed to choke out all light. Everything was going exactly according to plan. Her eyes glinted back to her bag occasionally, and she could feel a sense of unease as she sat there, against a tree. Around her, the sounds of the forest reigned supreme. Chirping birds and howling dogs echoed around her.

Michelle reached into her bag and snatched up a bottle of water. Her hands shook as she drank, trying to calm her nerves.

She had no idea if he would show up tonight, but if he did, she'd be the first to witness it. She wanted to be a part of it.

For months, she'd been tormented by her classmates. It wasn't just because she was part of the town's affluent elite, or for the fact that she didn't have many friends in the first place, it was because she was an easy target. Tonight, tonight would be the night that changed. She had everything planned to a tee.

A large portion of the town's teenage populace congregated around here; most of whom intended to get drunk or high. A good portion probably figured they'd get lucky.

They were all going to pay.

Michelle watched cars pass by on the road, coupled with a police cruiser. That was a problem, of course, but nothing she couldn't work around. The police in this town were bumbling idiots. How else could she have gotten as far as she had?

A wry smile peeled across her face as she sat there, musing over what she was going to do. Immense satisfaction filled her as she ran her hands over her bag.

If the Bunnyman didn't kill them, then she certainly would.

[Holy Empire of Avalon]

Halloween, known once as All Hallow's Eve or the Paganist response to All Saints Day which began the right right after - or so the books said anyway. In a lovely manor home just up on a hill there sat a man in his late twenties in a brown leather chair within a library full of books. The man with short cropped hair and a clean shaven face was snoring as two babies rested upon his chest. His apparel was a white dress shirt with black tie, his face still bore childlike looks despite having that slim and harsh look of a man who has been places that he never wanted to remember.

As the fireplace burned a figure entered the room, approaching the chair it craned around and from the shadows came the face of a young woman only four foot tall, her hair crimson as the blood that ran through her veins as she felt her heart skip at the scene before her. Producing a small phone she took a picture of it, Arthur and the twins looked so cute together.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" The man slowly opened his eyes as the woman before him put her hand over them.

"You were sleeping so peacefully..." She trailed off as he removed her hand from his eyes and kissed it sweetly, a feeling like electricity sparked through her being and the woman looked at him shyly. "Sorry, your friends did come over, but I told them you seemed tired. They said they'd catch you tomorrow after work. Speaking of which, typical October thirty first," the lass held up a handheld radio communication device that seemed unwieldy in her tiny hands, "nonstop chatter. Local police have a check point up near that bunnyman bridge nonsense. So far no crimes, night's still young though."

"Aria, what could possibly go down on Halloween night here? A terrorist bombing? D.C. is quite far. It'll just be some kids in costumes playing pranks, I'd not be surprised if some homicide report isn't a sick jokester in a bunny costume." Arthur looked to the babies on his chest, "They sleep pretty soundly, wonder if they will be like you but normal height?" Grinning cheekily Arthur knew Aria wouldn't get him right now cause he had the babies, that was as close to diplomatic immunity as one could get between them.

"Ha ha, funny. I know where you sleep." She gave him a emerald eyed look of mischief as Arthur immediately regretted saying his statement. "So say the legend is real. What if some werebunny rises from the dead and tries to kill everyone?" Aria received a concerned look from her husband, "I guess I'd shoot it? A werebunny? I thought the legend was some guy escaped in prisoner transport and wore a bunny suit to murder people. Honestly, I have no clue what the legend is. Mind Binging it? Got my hands full." Arthur nodded his head to the twin daughters laying on his chest as Aria whipped out her phone.

"Oh, you were close. Insane guy broke out during transit. Flayed bunnies and hung them in a tree. Later did the same to people. So legend says." She shrugged, "Still, what if it was a werebunny what would you do?"

"I'd shoot it in the heart with a carrot bullet." The agents both snickered, "Probably should put the girls in their beds shouldn't I?" Arthur stood to his full height of almost six feet exactly as he held the girls gently. In the living room there were two small cribs in the middle of the room, sitting the babies in the bed he went to the back of the room and sat on the couch where he would be joined by Aria. Laying on the couch lengthwise with his head in her lap the two would read their books quietly. The redheaded palm sized tiger read her Tom Clancy book, this one about the covert activities of the Special Intelligence Service as they protected Britain - in this novel they were fighting the KGB, a hot topic for Aria as it was something close to her heart. The once nail eating man whose head rested in her lap and whose ring sat upon her finger though was reading a book titled the Lucy Variations by some author she could not identify. Arthur had a severe love of teen girl's fiction, which was very humorous given his past, but it just proved to her that among a field of landmines she had found the one flower covered in thorns and needles.

[Krytonus]

Nicholas sighed, and signaled for the nearest car to drive forward and then stop. He approached them, arms folded. "May I ask where you're going tonight?"

Marcus rolled down the window as the officer approached, illuminated by the van's headlights. Marcus gave his most innocent smile and poked his head out the window. He widened his eyes, raised a finger and ducked back inside to turn off the music. A moment later, he returned and have the police officer what looked like a confused smile.

"Hello Officer! Awful lot of cars here for one bridge. What's going on, some Halloween party in the woods?" he chuckled. "Anyway, I'm just dropping my little cousins here back home. They need to get ready for, what," he leaned back and looked at the two girls who seemed a little bewildered and somewhat surprised at Marcus's sudden string of lies. "Halloween party?"
He turned back to the officer before he could even register the answer. He pretended to gaze around at the area through his windshield. "It's not dangerous around here, is it? We're not in any danger, are we?" Mock concern laced his voice. "I don't want to put Blake and Bianca anywhere they could be in trouble." He ran one hand through his hair, looking back at the officer with wide eyes.

[Blobovia]

One lone teenage girl, with her pink knit cap down far over her long, fair hair was walking in the still light autumn darkness of the early Halloween evening. The wind was chilly, and in retrospect she probably should've listened to her parents and taken an extra jacket over her shirt. Too late now , though. She was nearly at the bridge. The Bunnyman Bridge. Ah, finally! Toni smiled behind her glasses as Ozzy Osbourne sang Crazy Train in her headphones, almost a bit too loud. Just almost.

Toni Dahlman had been fascinated with the deranged Bunnyman ever since her family moved to Fairfax. She didn't believe all the stories, but they were certainly fun to read, and it would be just as fun to see the place where it all had happened. She would be careful of course, just as she had promised her worried parents when she left the house, but, of course, not too careful...

She was almost there now... but what was this? A whole lot of cars, including a police car? Had something happened? Hopefully nothing too bad... Likely just some party gone overbord... Toni continued on her way. Whatever it was, it wouldn't stop her.

[Barboneia]

Nicholas didn't like the look of the van's driver. He looked like some sort of hippie. They still existed? He thought they all had grown up by now. He shook his head, and folded his arms, glaring at Marcus. "They're your cousins, huh? They don't look like it." He sniffed, rubbing his nose. He could've sworn he smelt something odd... "And you decided the best way to take them home was along this poorly lit, mostly abandoned road in the middle of nowhere, eh?" He shook his head, suddenly chuckling. "You're here to see the 'famed' Bunny Man Bridge, I bet. Well, you're wasting your time, kid. There's nothing here. There's no bunnyman. That's just some stupid urban legend idiot teenagers made up to scare folks around here."

He let his arms drop back to his side, smirking at Marcus. "No, you're not in any danger. The only danger you might get into is a car accident, because you're holding up the line." He briefly motioned to the string of cars behind the van. "You can drive through, just... If you're going to hang out near the bridge, park off the road, and away from other vehicles, we don't need any more clustering here, alright?" Nicholas stepped back from the driver's window, mumbling. "I swear to god, it's not going to get easier..."

As he heard Mitch ask him if he could stay, Nicholas looked down at him and gave a glare. "No, you may not stay, and you can't help me. You should go home, the curfew's going to start soon, you know that. I don't need any more trouble out here than I already have, Mitch."