"Don't go back to that house, bro. It's not safe."
"No shit..."





It's been a week since the visit to the abandoned house, and Mizu still finds herself thinking about what she saw, the images burned into her mind. She can't explain them, and she doesn't dare tell anyone, but it keeps bothering her.
"You know what...?" She says, throwing away the scraps of her Saturday dinner. "I'm going." Before she can let herself change her mind, she puts on her shoes and a coat, grabbing her house keys, a small paring knife, and a flashlight. As she locks the door on her way out, she hides the knife in her sleeve and takes a deep breath.
The walk to the old house feels like a long one without Scyther by her side, and she simply can't shake the feeling that someone is watching her. The thought alone makes her stomach churn. Walking through town on her own so late at night drives chills up her spine, the buildings and cars looking so much more menacing than they do during the day. Hundreds of scenarios run through her mind as she walks. What if there's drunk teens there when she gets there? Or what if there's a rapist or something? She'd just have to be quick and quiet. Surely she'd be fine. That's why she took the knife, after all... And the flashlight would do some fair damage, too.
Before Mizu knows it, the house is in sight. She gulps down a lump in her throat and eyes it. It looks like an evil skeleton in the darkness, without even a street light to warm it.
"W..well.. No turning back now.." Her stomach twists and churns, body trembling as she walks onto the property, glancing through the doorway nervously. Seeing nobody, she walks in and makes her way up the stairs, trying to be as quiet as possible on the creaky steps. At the top of the stairs, she stops and closes her eyes, turning and entering the bewitched room. She takes a deep breath before opening her eyes and shining the light on the walls. There's fresh blood on the floor, with smeared ink across the walls. She walks toward the middle of the room, avoiding the spills that threaten her shoes.
"Oh my god..." She looks at everything, beginning to regret coming back. "I..."
Mizu gasps as she hears a noise behind her, spinning around. Her eyes widen in terror as her flashlight's beam lands on a dark figure with no face. She steps back, slipping and falling in a puddle of blood. The knife in her sleeve falls into the puddle, grazing her wrist on the way down. The room falls dark as the flashlight hits the floor with a loud thud, knocking the batteries out of place and making it roll away from her. The figure tilts his head, approaching her slowly.
"N-no!! Stay back!!" She searches for her knife, holding out in an attempt to be threatening.
The figure pauses a moment before reaching for her, the fear driving her to drop the knife again. She kicks him in the knee, running to the far wall and trying to look for a way out.
He moves closer, picking up her knife from the floor. He seems deadset on trapping her.
Mizu slides down the wall to a sitting position, choking up on tears that she's struggling to keep back. "Get away from me!!"
The black figure crouches in front of her, grabbing her arm and... measuring it with measuring tape. He unzips his sleeve- no... He unzips his arm, pulling a pen out, and writing on a small notepad before reaching into the pouch on his hip. He pulls out a zipper and scalpel, and attempts to hold Mizu still.
"NO, LET GO!!!" she screams, fighting against him. He lets go only for a moment, grabbing a syringe and making a gesture as if to tell her to calm down.
"No!" she backs up further, wishing she could become one with the wall. "Get away from me!! I don't want your stupid zippers!!"
He flinches back, seeming offended. He grabs her arm and injects the unknown substance into her before she can pull away again. It doesn't take long for the effects to take hold, making her feel weak and numb. "No..."
He holds the zipper against her arm, making sure he has the right one, then prepares to cut her arm open.
"No.. please... Please, don't..." she begs quietly, eyes watering. "I.. I'm sorry I kicked you.. Just please.."
He lifts his head, looking at her. Or at least, she assumes he's looking at her.
"Please... I'm sorry I broke in... I don't.. I don't want this... I was just scared..."
He looks at the zipper against her arm and puts a hand to his chin, seeming to think. Finally, he puts everything away, taking Mizu's weakened state as an opportunity to look her over curiously.
"Please don't hurt me.." She begs again, turning her head away. He turns her head back to him, his leathery black skin feeling like a glove against her cheek. He leans close, and she can feel him peering straight into her eyes.
"Let me go... please.."
He lets go of her cheek, patting her head, as if it would actually help her feel better. "Hello."
Mizu stares at him. His lips didn't move... He didn't even seem to have lips. "H...Hi..?"
"I'm Zippers!" His tone seemed oddly cheery, and his voice sounded surprisingly friendly. "Who are you?"
She couldn't believe her ears. She must be dreaming. Just a horrible, horrible nightmare. "I... My friends call me Mizu..."
"You kicked me." he says suddenly, nearly interrupting Mizu.
"I.. I'm sorry... I got scared.. Please don't kill me..."
"I forgive you!" He said, petting her hair. "Very soft..."
"What.. What are you?" The drug seems to be wearing off, giving Mizu a pins-and-needles sensation throughout her entire body.
"I like you." He ignores her question, seeming more interested in her looks than her words. "Come visit again. Tomorrow!"
"I... No, I..." She stops herself. If she doesn't agree, he'll probably kill her. "Y-yeah.. Okay.. Tomorrow afternoon."
He nods and stands up, hurrying out of the room and disappearing. A short while later, Mizu finds herself able to stand and walk, and forces herself to limp home in the dark, collapsing on the stairs as soon as she locks the door. She crawls to her room and wipes the ink and blood off on a towel, climbing into bed and praying she won't have a nightmare.
Her prayers are denied, and she wakes up with a scream the next afternoon, body trembling and eyes watering. She rolls over and hugs her pillow, crying into it for a few minutes.
"Hello!"
The sudden voice makes her scream and cling to the wall, turning to see Zippers standing by her bed.
"WH-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!? HOW DID YOU-"
"You didn't come." he interrupts. "I came to see you. It's warm here."
"Get out!!" She snaps, her shock turning into anger. "Who the hell do you think you are, stalking me and breaking into my house!? How long have you even been he-"
He cuts her yelling short by jumping back, then covering her mouth. "You'll like my friends." he says, a smile in his tone. "They get mad like you."
She stares at him again. Clearly there's something wrong with him, he seems like a child. But while this does annoy part of her, another part of her makes her feel bad for screaming at him.
She pulls his hand away. "Not now... Not ever. I don't like you, I don't want to meet your friends, either." She says firmly.
"I like you, though." he says. "You said please, and sorry."
"... You like me because I said please?"
"And sorry!" He says joyfully. "And you said you would visit!"
She begins to wonder what she'd gotten herself into. "Well, I can't visit... Sorry."
"See?" he perks up. "You said sorry!"
She sighs. "You're not going to listen, are you... Alright.. I'll meet your friends."