Eternal (Pennywise x OC)

Chapter 6

"I can't believe they let you out already!" Cassandra exclaimed as Ana got into her sister's car. She had been waiting in front of the hospital with a slew of other released psych patients. "You were there for one night. They can't possibly know that you're okay in that amount of time."

Ana had borrowed the teenage cutter patient's cell phone to call her sister for a ride back the house. Luckily, she had been able to get a hold of her on the first try, because the hospital was miles away from home and it was looking like it was going to rain.

Ana shrugged. "Guess they thought it was all just a big misunderstanding." She turned to greet Ronnie and Heather, who were both looking at tablets in the back seat.

Cassandra shook her head as she pulled away from the curb. "Then why were there a bunch of other people standing out there with you? Did something happen?"

"The psychiatrist was found to be unfit," Ana said dully.

"So that's reason to let a bunch of dangerous psycho's out on the street? Why can't they find another doctor?"

"'Dangerous psycho'? Is that you what you think I am, Cass?" Ana asked quietly, although knowing that the kids could hear them either way.

Cassandra scoffed. "Of course not, Ana, don't put words in my mouth." She glanced at her sister, eyeing the white bandage. "What happened to your neck?"

Ana reached up to touch it, as she had almost forgotten about it. "I got attacked by another patient."

"Oh God, Ana, I'm so sorry that happened to you!"

"It's fine. It's over now," Ana said, looking out the window. It had started to rain, the droplets starting to accumulate and disrupt her view the street as they drove. Probably better that way, she thought to herself. That way if there was a clown standing there she wouldn't be able to see it.

Once they were back at the house, Ana immediately got in the shower, the warm water seeming to wash away the last couple day's events. She realized that she hadn't gotten to bathe after being soaked in her own blood and Pennywise's drool...and after being assaulted by Dr. Ling. As the drugged memory of his hands on her chest came rushing back to her, she tried her best to block it out.

What seemed to work well was picturing the image of him on the floor, shrieking in terror as Pennywise's old woman form approached him. She found herself wondering if the woman had been his mother or grandmother whose memory haunted him. Either way, she felt surprisingly grateful for the shape shifter's sudden interference; the feeling made her feel like a horrible person.

A few minutes later, she was dialing Mike. The overwhelming grief was evident in his voice when he answered. Ana was informed that the friends that he had called had returned to Derry, all except for one. Stanley was dead.

"Oh, Mike, I'm so sorry," she said, at a loss at what else she could possibly say. "Is there anything I can do?"

"There is. The Losers - I mean, my friends and I are going to take the night to discuss a plan. With Stanley gone I think we're going to need your help now more than ever."

"Do you want me to come now?" she asked, hearing crying in the background.

"No, probably not tonight. Can you wait for my call tomorrow?"

"Yeah, of course."

"There is one thing I need you to do tonight," he said cryptically. "I need you to find something from your past from when you were in Derry before. It's important for the ritual I told you about."

"Mike," she said, taking a shaky breath. "I still haven't been able to remember anything about Derry from before. I mean, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on where I was when I was a kid, and Maine wasn't one of them."