The Familiar Page #2

A young lonely boy is haunted by a creature that claims to be his friend. Taking the shape of those the boy is familiar with, but not quite right.

• Horror
• Short story
• Fiction

								


 “You keep saying that, but I’m not so sure.”  

 “It’s true!” it yelled, voice cracking “I know that you sleep with the covers over your head, I know that you wish you had a friend, I know that you only eat egg salad sandwiches with pickles and orange juice every day for lunch. I know that you always wear mitch-matched socks, and that you have your mommy sing you a song when she is here. I know your father likes to tickle you in the morning to wake you up, I know you do not like to watch anything but the birds outside the kitchen window. I know everything about you because I am your familiar.”  

 “ You are starting to freak me out, why do you know so much?” he asked with fear laced with his words. His small hands held tight onto his sweater as he pulled on it to let air in. He looked left and right but refused to look the creature in its eyes, fearing showing how scared he was.  

 “ Because, “it started. “I have been watching, listening, and waiting for you to play with me for a long time.”  

 “ Well I do not want to play with you, leave me alone!” He yelled and ran away from the creature. He began to sprint when he heard clawing nails on the floors. The scratching was getting closer and closer to the out of breath boy.  

 He ran with all his might in search of his nanny, but he could not find her in the large house. He ran up the stairs, down the stairs and back into the kitchen, he was surprised that he had not been caught yet. Then he noticed the clawing had stopped. He could only hear his heartbeat pounding in his chest. Suddenly he heard a thump, then a door slamming shut.  

 “ Nanny?” he cried. Nothing but echos answered back. He stood up straight and searched for where the sound came from. He did not want the familiar, he wanted his mommy and his daddy. He wanted to be alone, he wanted to get rid of this thing.  

 “ Where are you?” he called as he entered the large kitchen. There on the wooden table sat his lunch but the juice had spilled over the tiled floor. He wanted to take a bite but decided that now was not the time for food. He walked around the kitchen and was about to leave when he heard a loud creak coming from the pantry.  

 Too afraid to open it wider, the boy stared at the cracked, dark room. He could not see anything. He swallowed his fear and settled his breathing once again. Walking over to the door he grabbed the handle and opened it wider. Still being pitch black, he went to reach for the light string hanging on the ceiling.  

 “ I would not do that, if I were you.”  a voice called that sounded nothing like anyone he knew. It was gurgled and shaky. It sounded whispery and high pitched. He did it, anyway, yanking the string. There standing, covered in blood was the lifeless body of his nanny. Fear took over his body and his eyes widened as the body fell onto the floor. He looked at her and then backed up at the creature that was now standing there. It was taller than ever before, its skin pale and covered in blood. Its hands wear long tendrils that hit the floor, the knees bent backward like a bird.  

 “ Why won't you play with me?” its voice dripping with anger.  

 “ What are you?” The little boy backed away as the creature stepped out of the pantry crushing the nanny under its feet.  

 “ I AM YOUR FAMILIAR!” It screeched, making the little boy grab his ears in pain. He was shaking and staring at the sickening grin of the creature staring at him.  

 “ I want my mommy!” he cried. The familiar tilted its neck quickly, its eyes becoming blacker. Its body morphed into a shorter version of itself. Its hair growing down to its back and turning a deep brown, its legs growing wider, and its face replaced with the one of the boy’s mothers but different.  

 “ Mommy’s here.” It reached out its hand and petted the boy’s cheek. It smiled widely; its voice benign replaced with the voice of his mother's but higher pitched.  

“ You’re not my mommy.”  
“ Would you prefer it if I were daddy?” It began to change as the little boy heard the keys jingle in the front door. 

“ Mommy!” He ran over to the door and opened it smiling only to have his smile fade. There stood his mother and father. They had blood dripping from their throats as they reached out to their son.  

 “ Help us” they gurgled in unison before falling forward. He stared at his parents' lifeless bodies as he turned to see the creature now looking like his father.  

 “ Don’t be afraid son, I am here for you.”  

 “ No!” He ran before getting his arm grabbed by the creature.  

“ You made me like this, you wanted too much of me.” It says as it begins to change again. “YOU DID THIS!” This time it took the form of the little boy. Its mouth opened wide, and everything went black. 

 “ So what do we think happened here?” A police officer said, staring at the crime scene.  

 “ It says here that the man in the green sweater had severe schizophrenia. His file says he often mentally reverted to being a little boy when he was close to having an episode. It looks like before he would scream something about a creature, and it says that they thought they helped him with medication.” A medic said, watching as the police officers covered each body with a white sheet and traced the scene.  

  “ That does not explain why he killed that little boy, that store manager, the housekeeper, or his parents.”  

 Watching from the shadows was a sickening sight that no one could see. It slithered into the dark, smiling with its wide yellow teeth, holding a bottle of pills. Then let out a whisper. 
 “Familiar.”  

 

End 
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