Eternal (Pennywise x OC)

Chapter 17

While lying in the back of a car in her state of unconsciousness, Ana started to dream. It was one of those sequences where even while you're experiencing it and it all seems so real, there's still a small part of you that thinks it can't be because of just how ridiculous it is.

Right now, in her euphoric little dream land, Ana was seated in a row boat surrounded by crystal blue water, the sun high in the sky and not a worry in her mind. She was looking down to watch some fish that were lazily swimming around the boat, the water so clear that she could nearly see the bottom of the lake that she was so carelessly drifting around in.

"I wish I had some bread so I could feed them," she said, still watching the happy little fish as they danced around, and she wiggled some fingers near the surface to draw them to her.

"No bread," came a raspy voice, and she looked up to see Pennywise the Dancing Clown seated across from her, an oar in each hand. "But I have cotton candy!"

Ana smiled when she saw him. "That won't work. It will disappear as soon as it hits the water."

The clown frowned at her. "How about some leftover meat?" He let go of an oar, then reached behind his back to grab something. When his hand reappeared again, he was showing her a fistful of some sort of mangled carcass, blood starting to drip off his formerly white glove and onto the bottom of the boat.

Ana wrinkled her nose at the gruesome sight. "What kind is it?"

"It's leftover monk," he said, starting to giggle, and Ana laughed too. "I have a present for you!" he said, brandishing the flesh at her. She reached her hand in without hesitation, the blood starting to stain her skin, and dug around for a moment. It was warm and squishy, although not all that unpleasant of a feeling. Then, her searching fingers felt something solid, and she plucked it out. It was a ring, the diamond on it so large that it was the very definition of looking like it came from a bubblegum machine.

Ana gasped, sliding it on her ring finger, the ring starting to drip the blood down that hand as well. "Penny, you shouldn't have!" she exclaimed, rushing forward to hug the clown's tall frame. He dropped the meat on the floor of the boat so he could properly return the embrace, and it landed with a distinct squelching noise. Neither of them noticed.

"But," Ana said, pulling away a bit to look into his eyes, "Did you ask permission first? Talk to my family?"

Pennywise looked at her, confused at her question. "But who do I ask?"

Ana, feeling a bit confused herself now, started to look around the boat. When she was sure there was no one else, she sighed. "I suppose you're right. There's only you."

"Then everything's the way it should be!" Pennywise said gleefully, clapping his hands together; some of the blood sprayed and hit Ana in the face. "Just one more thing," he added, pointing down. Ana turned and looked to see Mike lying on the bottom of the boat, duct tape over his mouth and his hands and feet bound together. He was struggling against the restraints, trying to scream, but the duct tape was muffling the majority of it out.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," Ana said, and she moved to stand by his legs. She and Pennywise bent down, she grabbing his legs, and he grasping his shoulders; in unison, they heaved him over the side and he hit the water with a loud splash.

"Three's a crowd," she said quietly as she watched his body start to sink to the bottom. Pennywise stood by her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to watch with her, a giggle escaping his scarlet lips.

Then, she felt a sudden, sharp pain on her forehead. She went to place her hand there, and her eyes were starting to flutter open. From what she could see, her current environment was nothing like her peculiar dream sequence; it was dark, and the only light she could see was from a flashlight that seemed to be waving around erratically. She could make out the silhouettes of some tall evergreen trees around her.