Hatchetfield Stories

He Climbs Up And Then He Climbs Down

What's this??? Disappearing for 3 weeks and then uploading 2 days in a row??? On brand ngl✌🏻

The idea for this comes from Hannah_Tesoro but this was supposed to be a lot less dark & serious (it was supposed to be a crackfic but my whump obsession took over and honestly why am I even surprised at this point)

TRIGGER WARNINGS:
-Nightmares
-Animal death (in nightmare)
-Hanging (in nightmare)
-Public execution (in nightmare)
-Death (in nightmare)

WITW spoilers

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"Shut up, the news is starting," Pamela stopped Hannah when she asked when they were going to eat lunch, seeing it was almost evening already.

"Welcome back!" Donna's cheerful voice spoke over the animated intro, which faded into her and Dan sitting in the studio.

Hannah sighed, grabbing a book and trying to ignore her rumbling stomach.

While her mother swooned over Dan's new haircut, Hannah couldn't concentrate on her book, seeing the volume of the TV was overwhelmingly loud. She didn't bother asking her mom to turn it down, as she had already noticed her mom was very annoyed today.

So instead, she watched.

"Today, we have some more exciting news about Peanuts, the Hatchetfield pocket squirrel!"

"That's right, Dan, today marks the one-year anniversary of our friend Ed rescuing our town celebrity."

She, no, Webby tensed as the squirrel was shown.

"He's bad," the spider whispered. "Real bad."

Hannah repeated her words, and her mom snapped at her. "He's not bad! Look at him! The most handsome guy in town if you ask me!"

"Not Dan, the squirrel."

"Oh, shut up, such a small animal doesn't hurt anyone. And it's a fun story, so just stay silent or go to your room, okay? I don't need your dumb commentary when I'm on a date."

"It's not a date, he can't even see you..." Hannah mumbled softly, but loud enough for her mother to hear.

"Enough! Go to your room and don't come in here until I tell you too, alright? God, I wish your sister had done a better job raising you, now I have two pieces of shit I have to pay for."

Hannah ran to her room, slamming the door closed to cut off the insults her mom was throwing at her. She said down on her bed, closing her eyes.

"Webby?" she whispered.

"Yes, Hannah. You have to defeat this evil before it defeats you."

"The squirrel?"

"Yes. What may seem like peaceful chatter to the human ear is, well... not so peaceful. I can't translate exactly what he said, but his intention is clear. You have to stop him."

Hannah grabbed her bag and swung it over her shoulder, the pins clacking softly at the movements. "How?"

"There's a gun in the kitchen cabinet above the sink," Webby whispered, lowering her voice even though Hannah was the only one who could hear her.

Hannah nodded, sneaking to the kitchen. She froze when the floor creaked, but her mom was too busy complimenting Dan to notice her.

She ran out of the door as soon as she hid the gun under her sweater, almost tripping over her untied shoelace, but not stopping until she was deep in the Witchwood Forest.

It was dark. She was far away from the nearest house, and the leaves above her kept the sunlight from reaching the ground.

But Hannah had been here many times, and she knew exactly where Ed lived. She could already hear talking in the distance, and soon she saw the bright lights the news crew had brought for the interview.

Making sure she stayed hidden for Ed, Dan, Donna, and the few crew members that stood around them, she snuck closer to the house.

Peanuts wasn't on the woodworker's shoulder, like he had been when she was still home. She looked around, and her eyes fell on what looked like a birdhouse, in a tree near her. But she assumed the fuzzy tail that she could see did not belong to a bird.

She put the gun in her pocket after making sure the safety was on, and started to climb. Her worn-down shoes weren't great for climbing, but she managed to get to the wooden box with relative ease.

Pulling out the gun, she wished that she could get down and run away before they noticed her. She closed her eyes, pointing the gun into the birdhouse.

She flinched when the gunshot sounded, dropping the gun and letting go of the branch she was holding. Scrambling up as soon as she hit the ground, she started running, but not before the camera turned towards her, letting the entire town know that she was the girl who killed their town mascot.

*** *** ***

"Miss Holloway!"

"Hannah? What are you doing here?"

"You have to help me!" she yelled, running past Miss Holloway into the safety of her house.

"Hannah? What's wrong?" The woman asked, closing the door and turning to face the shaking girl.

"Peanuts... He's- He was- I-"

"Hannah, take a deep breath, okay? Come sit."

Hannah sat down on the couch, but not relaxing yet, as she told her the entire story without even pausing to breathe.

"Okay... We can just go to the news and tell them what happened?"

"But what if-"

"Hey," Miss Holloway started, giving Hannah a playful nudge. "You can tell them what you've just told me, and if they don't believe you... Just remember I'm a witch." She winked, and Hannah nodded hesitantly, standing up.

They went outside, making sure to avoid crowds as much as they could in fear of someone recognizing her outfit.

"Stupid that I forgot to give you a jacket or something to disguise you."

Hannah nodded, freezing when she noticed the crowd that had formed in front of the news station.

"There she is!" someone shouted, pointing at her. "The girl who killed Peanuts!"

Hannah ran as fast as her legs would allow her, but someone tackled her from behind, and she hit the ground with a scream, scraping her hands and chin. The man turned her around, so she lay on her back, and pressed a wet towel over her mouth and nose.

Her heart skipped a beat when she realized that sweet smell was not water. She struggled against the man who sat on her hips, smacking her hand against his arms in an attempt to make him let go, but more people gathered around her, holding her hands down as she kicked her legs frantically, looking for a way out as her vision began to sway. The people holding her down faded in and out of her vision, and the last thing she saw before closing her eyes was a familiar red-haired woman pushing her way through the crowd.

*** *** ***

Hannah winced at the rough ropes she noticed were tied around her wrists, holding her up. Blinking the spots in her vision away, she looked around. "Miss Holloway!"

"Shhh, Hannah..." the woman hushed her, struggling against her own restraints. "Stay quiet. We'll get out of here." Despite her reassuring words, she didn't seem so certain of it herself.

Hannah nodded, wincing at the pain in her head, as the drug had not worn off completely.

She looked around, her eyes landing on an old shed. Through the curtains, she could see the silhouette of a person walking around, occasionally bending down to grab something.

The door of the shed opened with a loud creak, and Hannah tensed. She struggled against the restraints when her eyes fell on the rope the man was holding, despite the reassuring words from Miss Holloway.

The man tied the rope to a nearby podium, and Hannah couldn't help but think about Nightmare Time, when she barely escaped death. She looked at Miss Holloway, and could see a spark of determination in her eyes.

She had saved Hannah's life before, and would not hesitate to do it again.

The man untied Miss Holloway's bindings, and led her to the rope, forcing her head through the loop.

An audience rose from the ground, and they all cheered as the man put his hand on the lever that would open the trapdoor under her feet.

As he rambled some story about their 'sins', Hannah looked at Miss Holloway, and for the first time, fear was clear in her eyes.

"So they must pay for what they've done!" the man exclaimed, pulling the lever down.

The trapdoor opened, and Miss Holloway fell, the snap of her neck not heard over the cheering of the crowd.

*** *** ***

"HANNAH!"

Hannah woke up screaming, clawing at her sister's arms.

"Shhhh, shhh..." Lex hushed her, pulling her close.

"Nightmare?"

Hannah nodded with a squeal, hugging her sister tightly to hide the tears streaming from her red eyes.

"You've been having a lot of those since we came home, don't you?"

Hannah nodded. "Nightmare Time is over, but the nightmares aren't," she whimpered.

Lex nodded sympathetically, though Hannah doubted she really understood Nightmare Time.

"Do you want to call Miss Holloway in the morning?"

Hannah nodded, letting Lex wipe her tears away.

"Come on, let's go back to sleep, okay?" Lex lay down so Hannah was laying on her chest.

Listening to her sister's heartbeat and quiet snores lulled her right back to sleep.