The sound of footsteps from another time or whispers that echo sweet memories on the wind. These are the imprints we leave upon the world around us, a reminder to future generations that we're all connected.
Adam Wilson knew this far too well himself. Buying his old friend's abandoned two-story home on 13th Avenue for pennies on the dollar, what it lacked in presence was made up with an otherworldly charm.
Hallways were empty for nearly six years and each room was covered in sheets of filthy dust. Cobwebs hung in the corners of each bedroom, the bathroom a pale colored hue which showed no vibrancy of life.
A capsule of the past unready to move forward. Trapped in a frozen moment, one which haunted this house for year after year. It waited patiently in search of life it desperately needed to move on, a quick gasp of air to gain sentience.
The front door clicked in place with a cold distant echo. Adam needed to add some force to the old splintered frame before it would grant access. The young man in his early twenties stumbled through the threshold, blonde hair a completely frazzled mess and pale blue eyes seemingly glowing the darkness.
"Door didn't stick during the Open House!" Adam grumbled angrily, a tiny brown box held under his left arm.
The living room had a chill unlike anything he ever knew, Adam exhaled a stream of steam from between his lips. "Must be a draft." He blew warm air into his hands before making his way upstairs in haste.
Each step caused a creak to hiss from the old wooden stairs. The top level of the house was engulfed in inky thick darkness, Adam couldn't see anything beyond the cold empty void.
"hElLo?" A voice so soft called out from the nothingness that Adam wasn't sure he heard anything at all.
A cold chill danced down his spine in a melancholic ballet. Reaching the top of the staircase left him breathless, his eyes unable to adjust to the void. Spotting only one room to the right which drew him close, it seemed to have a warm orange glow that beckoned him to safety.
Entering the room he tossed the box to the floor with a loud thud. That one petite box nearly killed him, he couldn't even phantom trying to carry the larger ones inside tonight. His energy drained from deep within, as he felt a numb ache upon his lower back.
He wasn't too sure what brought forth such weakness, but this room seemed to be a haven. He felt oddly at home and peaceful here, as if it were vaguely familiar to him from a time long past. The warm light pouring in from the window allowed him to crack a genuine smile.
"I should maybe plant a few flowers here," Adam whispered under his breath, brushing away a rotted apple before lifting the window upward allowing a soft gust of wind to enter.
Maybe this place was a peaceful retreat from the hustle and bustle of city life. His apartment was a cramped nightmare on most days, and a nonsensical explosion of noises on most nights. Yet this lonely almost empty neighborhood seemed genuinely at peace, as if a relic from another time.
With a huff he glanced towards the empty bed to the right, covered by a dusty old sheet. He lifted it high and dusted the filth away, grateful that his old friend chose not to take any of the furnishings. When he went and chose to travel around the world, or so he heard.
The bed was a pale red with soft pillows, this room at one point probably belonged to his friend.
Thoughts were broken by the odd formation of black sludge seeping outward from the corner wall. He scrunched his nose taking uneasy steps toward the oozing surface, a foul scent wafted outward as if decayed. Even more curious was the fact the substance seemed to resemble two handprints in shape, not his own but smaller and more feminine.
He reached out hesitantly as two fingers pressed into the sludge, it bubbled and moved underneath his touch as if alive."Gross, is this mold!?" Adam pulled away rubbing the goo off on his side.
"I knew, I should've had this house inspected before moving in..." His voice grumbled annoyed before he walked back to the bed exhausted.
He could finish moving his stuff tomorrow, tonight he just wanted to rest. No, he needed it, he could feel himself unable to keep his eyes open. The room around him was fading away at an alarming rate, he could swear a Auburn-haired girl was watching him from the doorway.
It couldn't be.
Simply a trick from a tired mind, then all went black.
"YoU'lL nEvEr FiNd Me…"
“ThE aNsWeRs RiGhT tHeRe…”
Adam felt the night race past him in a flash, only able to focus his mind around 4:50 A.M. if only for a moment. Everything soon faded back to the abyss once more. It wasn't until hours later that he'd wake up in a panic around noon.
He trembled in a cold sweat upon the sheets struggling to catch his breath. Sunlight poured in through the window, yet brought no sense of life to the room. The once welcoming warmth was replaced with a hollow feeling.
“Phst, now I get why you left this place…” Adam snorted aloud as he sprawled out on the bed with a true lack of energy or inspiration.
The boxes in the truck would have to wait further. Straining to lift off the bed, he thought maybe a shower would pep him up. Taking out his cell from his jeans he lazily scrolled down to Dasher, ordering a cup of coffee from uptown with sugar.
Dragging both feet across the floor he headed towards the bathroom, the floorboards covered in some kind of crust or dirt. Another labor added to a quickly growing list of annoyances. Pushing the bathroom door open, he was hit by a foul stench unlike anything else.
He couldn't quite pin down the scent, maybe it was burnt rubber?
Or spoiled butter with a wave of decay.
Adam shuddered in disgust backing out of the bathroom sick to his stomach. With each step backward he fell off balance, his weight shifting towards the back he found himself tumbling to the floor with a thud.
A young girl giggling at the humorous sight, Adam quickly snapped his head behind him. Barely able to catch a shadow of a girl fading into one of the backrooms. He could feel an icy chill trace down his lower back and, his heart racing wildly.
“Hello?” Adam cleared his throat as his voice echoed eerily throughout the empty abode.
Rising to his feet weakly he stumbled in the direction of faint footsteps. Following the ominous noise towards a broom closet. He could hear giggling once more from within, palms sweating. He reached out to grab the knob giving it a firm twist.
As the wooden door creaked slowly, Adam looked within to see a dusty but ultimately empty broom closet. The only thing of note was a pink video tape on the floor, a faded title scribbled across the front in childish font.
“Cooking with Sweetie Belle.”
Kneeling slowly with curiosity he slowly reached out to grab the tape, a thunderous knocking frenzy from downstairs causing him to squeal in a high-pitched tone. His hand snatching up the tape, he rushed down the crooked stairway towards the insistent pounding of wood.
Adam answered the door sweating bullets and frightened, to see a young woman on his doorstep holding a scalding hot coffee. “I got an order for coffee?” She spoke in a bemused tone of voice.
“That's me…” Adam's voice squeaked as his thumping heart began to steady, he was quick to clear his throat again.
“Uh-huh. Don't hurt yourself.” She smirked, handing over the coffee to Adam.
He nodded silently as he watched her walk across his dead lawn, a tape in one hand and the brew in the other. Gathering his nerves he sipped the cup and went back inside, his nose scrunched in disappointment as the door clicked shut.
The coffee was overflowing with cinnamon, not sugar.
Giving a tiny gag, Adam sighed and placed the cup on an empty shelf to his left. “Sweetie Belle, huh?” He would chuckle as he walked into the disheveled living room. The couches were busted to hell and back, but an ancient box TV was still hooked up in the corner.
Crooked rabbit ears sticking out from the top, as a cobweb-covered VCR was laid to rot on top of it. Walking over he clicked on the TV half expecting it to explode, but instead, it flashed on with a blanket of static snow.
“Didn't take you for an MLP fan, Seth,” Adam smirked as he blew out the VCR cautiously, and slipped the pink tape inside with an audible click.
A few more clicks, and two minutes of buzzing later. The old machine seemed to force itself to come back alive. Adam raised a brow with interest as he went full Criss-cross Applesauce on the dingy old floor.
Static lifted from the screen as it strained to focus, an odd-looking logo for Hasbro glitching into view before a crackling pop was heard. The melodic song of innocence suddenly filled the room, and Adam was caught off guard by the surprisingly lush audio.
Without missing a beat a young pink-haired girl jumped out in front of the camera smiling cutely, a visibly distraught kitchen in the background covered in dirty dishes and half-baked concoctions. She had purple streaks in her hair, dressed in an adorable white spring dress.
“Hello, I'm Sweetie Belle! What's your name!?” She giggled clapping both hands together excitedly.
A tan girl her age walks in from the left with a magenta-colored pixie cut. “I've searched everywhere for the recipe, I can't…” She stopped mid-sentence looking towards the screen confused, her baggy black Hoodie coated in flour and eggs.
“Hee, this is my friend Scootaloo!” Sweetie quickly pulled her closer into a tight hug.
“Uhh, hi?” She spoke in an uneasy tone of voice.
Adam chuckled thinking this was pretty cute so far, it must've been some kind of spin-off of Equestria Girls since the characters were human. He wasn't sure though, he secretly had been a closeted Brony in the past. But honestly couldn't believe Seth the jock, had been the same all this time.
If he ever got to see him again, he was going to bust his chops over it.
“Scoots here thinks that if we're going to bake, we need a dumb Ole recipe!” Sweetie rolled her vibrant green eyes playfully.
“No, I mean it would help! You kinda aren't the best cook…” Scootaloo forced a sweet smile as she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.
Sweetie huffed her tiny arms crossing over her chest in dismay, her rosy cheeks puffed out in anger. “As if! I bake all the time!” She clicked her lips smugly.
Scootaloo wincing from those few words, her violet eyes narrowed with uncertainty. “Don't take this the wrong way, but I've seen you burn cereal. “ She delivered her line in a deadpan voice.
Adam laughed aloud on the floor as he was reminded of a few episodes of MLP about just that.
“Har-har, but jokes on you! With my new friends here, I'm going to bake the most delicious treat ever!” Sweetie gazed towards the screen pointing forward, her sweet smile followed by the cutest of squees.
“Sweetie, I don't think this is a good idea…” Scootaloo found herself hushed, as her friend lifted her finger to her lips slyly.
“C'mon friends let's bake together!!” Sweetie squealed towards the screen in excitement, as she pushed her friend offscreen and scooped up an oversized dirty pan off the counter behind her.
Gazing towards the screen she passed by a multitude of ingredients scattered across the kitchen haphazardly. “So tell me everybody, what are the ingredients for our treat!? If you were paying attention, I bet you already saw them!!” Sweetie flashed an innocent smile to the screen.
Adam waited for what seemed like an extended period in silence, confused if maybe the tape had somehow frozen.
“What's that!? You don't know? Silly we're making an @##&3 913 !” Adam held to his head as the tape gave a sudden loud screech, while the tape seemed to glitch.
Sweetie shrugged as she skipped around the kitchen humming aloud in a childish melody. “Oh well, I bet I'll be able to just guess the ingredients!” She picked up a shoe off the floor tossing it into the pan, drizzling it in milk afterwards, and tossing in a few rotted bananas for good luck.
Scootaloo stumbled back into view, just in time to watch her bestie slide an overstuffed pan of junk into the nearby oven.”Sweetie, I'm pretty sure that's not right!” She stomped her feet on the ground worriedly.
“Worryloo, just chill! Our new friends know what to do!!” She snorted and looked at the screen with a wink.
“So how high should we cook it?” Sweetie tapped her fingernails across the top of the oven for what felt like an eternity.
“How about we try to make some Ice cream?” Scootaloo spoke up to break the silence.
“That's ok if you don't know. I'll just put it on the max!!” Sweetie giggled with an oblivious voice, slamming the pan inside and twisting the knob until it snapped off.
“Ahhh, what did you do!?” Scootaloo screamed in fear as her friend just tossed the knob behind her like it was a joke.
Adam laughed again, shaking his head from side to side. “Hahaha, this is crazy!” He relaxed as the oven began to billow black smoke.
“I told you silly, I'm baking a…” Suddenly a loud explosion thundered throughout the whole house, Adam fell back genuinely frightened as the oven behind the tweens erupted in a wall of flames.
“FIRE!!” Scootaloo screamed in true terror as Sweetie was covered in flames, her screams of agony and pain sending chills over Adam.
He watched with mouth agape as the fiery blaze covered Scootaloo who continued to howl in pain, her voice turning to coughs of anguish. The foul scent of human flesh burning wafted from the VCR, as Adam felt his stomach tighten in fear.
With a click, the tape ejected itself.
An eerie wave of heat suddenly coming from the kitchen, as large clouds of smoke began to pour into the room. Adam froze in fear, unsure what to do as his body felt paralyzed unable to budge.
“What the Fu…”
Six years earlier.
Adam smiled at the Apple Bloom plush in front of him at the local store. He secretly was still a pretty big fan of MLP. Always in love with the details of the plush toys especially, they looked so lifelike and full of spirited energy.
Seth laughed from behind, placing a friendly hand on his shoulder.”Hahaha, it's cute, but ya can't ride it.” He teased as Adam rolled his eyes sarcastically.
“I wasn't looking at it, I'm just bored here!” He defensively replied while his friend slid both hands into his pockets.
“Dude, we can go now if you're in a rush.” Seth nudged his friend's side.
Adam snorted with annoyance.” Didn't you drag me here to pick up something for an art project?” He followed behind his buddy closely, both nearing the front door of the establishment.
“Science Project, I'm having my things delivered. Some are machinery.- I couldn't possibly just pop that in my pocket. “ Seth made sure to joke as his friend shook his head with a sigh.
“Got time to work on those college projects even with…” Adam was cut off by Seth rushing outside, the blinding light of the sun outside stunning him momentarily.
“Especially now!”
Adam snapped out of his bewildered stupor visibly shaken by the current events. Coughing aloud, he rushed into the kitchen, fire had spread across the counters, and swiftly engulfed the top of the ceiling. He had absolutely nothing to fight these flames back, with little choice, he rushed to the front door.
Hands fumbled and pulled on the knob with all his might. The metallic orb heating up in his grasp, the door suctioned tightly to the frame unable to budge. He was trapped in this hellish tinderbox, his heart shattering into a thousand pieces.
He gasped for fresh air as smoke burned his throat painfully. He began to stumble as his vision became more hazy and out of focus. Falling in front of the TV, he felt an odd compulsion to push the tape back into the VCR.
The click echoed around him, smoke suffocating as he trembled with faded strength. Barely able to press rewind on the machine before the world faded to darkness. His head fell to the floor with a loud pop, followed by silence.
Adam coughed aloud in a scratchy and almost squeaky voice. His eyes slowly began to focus on the trashed room around him, no sign or scent of smoke present around the house. Had he beaten the death trap, if so.
How?
He had a vague idea, but the mere concept that he actually rewound reality with a children's tape scared the heck outta him.
“I …hate fires.” Adam coughed gently in a higher pitched voice. He could feel his voice cracking.
The smoke must've injured his throat during the blaze. Trembling, he stumbled to his feet, barely making it to the kitchen as he turned on the faucet, letting the water flow. Lowering both hands, he cupped some water quickly while taking a cooling drink.
The liquid slowly slid down his throat, feeling like shards of glass. Gagging up a little bit of water, he coughed frantically, trying to catch a gasp of fresh air. Adam had no idea what was going on, but that tape was bad news. He had to get rid of it.
Stumbling back to the living room, he wasted no time in ejecting the cheap pink plastic from the VCR. Clutching it by the sides, he held it up to his eyes, feeling an odd energy wafting from within. Regaining his strength, he smashed the tape against the nearby wall, watching as it exploded into a few dozen pieces across the filthy floor.
“Happy trails ya'll.” He spoke in a slight southern drawl for a split second. He shook it off just as quickly.
He wasn't sure why he thought it was appropriate to say, but it had just felt right.
Sliding down the wall afterward, defeated and trembling from exhaustion. He took slow, steady breaths in the hope that his strength might return. Struggling to keep his eyes open and mind from shattering, he pondered if he indeed used that tape to alter his fate.
Or maybe he just died, and this was just a crappy afterlife?
Mind racing out of control, he felt his vision begin to blur once more. The faint footsteps of a child growing near, the blurred visage of a young girl skipping into the room excitedly. She kneeled down in front of him, voice a distorted collection of whispers and static.
“You don't think it's that easy, do you?” She collected the pieces of plastic off the floor humming, without much effort piecing it back together with ease.
“Let's not throw anymore tantrums, hmm?” She held the now repaired tape at her side, face a blur of colors as she inched closer.
Kneeling in front of him, an icy chill filling the air of the room, “What are you? A baby?” She placed the tape onto his lap.
Her eyes glowed a bright white hue, blinding Adam as the world faded away.
The only sound left was that of static.
Six years earlier.
Adam knew something didn't feel right. He was back in that infernal house of horrors, yet something was quite off. The house seemed more colorful and warm, almost as if it were a home.
Standing near the stairway, he felt his gaze lift upward towards the stairway. The soft clicking of the VCR echoes down each step eerily. Without hesitation, he felt drawn to investigate, as if an invisible hand guided him up each wooden step towards an unfamiliar goal.
Reaching the top of the stairway, he felt drawn to the room he called his own. Walking closer, he placed his calloused hand atop the wooden frame. With a simple push, the door creaked wider, as he felt that invisible force pull him into a blinding light. Everything suddenly felt wrong, out of place, and his body weakened significantly.
Gasping aloud, he was under the rose colored sheets within the room. He felt so weak that he could barely move at all. His lungs burned uncontrollably as he coughed aloud, but it wasn't his voice at all. It was higher in pitch and softer, gazing towards his hands they were small, delicate, and childlike.
“Are you feeling any better today?” Seth suddenly walked in through the doorway, his face fixed upon Adam in worry.
Adam wanted to ask what was happening?
How did he end up here?
Where was he?
Yet he couldn't control his voice at all. “I'm fine, just feeling a little cold.” A sweet feminine voice speaking instead, her teeth beginning to chatter.
Adam was trapped within this vessel, living another life. Unable to move or scream, he could feel his heart begin to race out of control. Seth chuckled as he walked closer, Adam shocked how he towered over the room from this point of view.
With a gentle tug, he lifted a larger pink quilt over him, warmth taking hold as Adam felt himself becoming more relaxed. “I got a surprise for you.” Seth grinned as he shuffled across the room towards a bright pink VCR.
“Is it ponies?” The voice chirped excitedly as she wriggled underneath her protective quilt, unable to stop herself from smiling.
“Hahaha, something like that.” Seth grinned as he held up that cursed Pink Tape.
Adam could feel his heart nearly explode in fear. The sound of it entering the VCR wafted ever closer towards him. Eyes locked onto the static filled screen as everything blurred to a blinding white.
“I need you to see past the static on the screen…”
jOiN uS….
Adam stared vacantly off into space as raindrops from above fell upon his head. He slowly felt his body regaining movement, and his fingers twitched as he noticed himself clutching the pink tape tightly. He was soaking wet outside near the local park, sitting on the bench with his legs crossed underneath him.
“What in tarnation happened?” Adam spoke in a clear southern drawl as his eyes widened in shock.
He lifted his hand over his mouth, unsure why he was speaking in a foreign accent at all. “Why do I sound like a garsh darn hayseed?” Adam spoke aloud once more, each word dripping with southern sass.
Suddenly, a red car pulled over close as it zoomed through a puddle, causing a large splash. The window lowered as the Dasher from earlier poked her head out, smirking.”Crashing from that coffee, huh?” She teased, noticing how spacey he must've looked.
“Huh?” He barely stuttered out confused.
“I thought you might have answered for your mom, but you chugged that monster, didn't ya?” She continued to laugh as Adam scrunched his nose in confusion.
“Whatcha mean my Ma!?” He spoke not only in a thicker accent, but his voice was sweet, soft, and feminine.
Just like a child's voice.
“I'm just saying kiddo, you chug those things you'll be crashing all the time. Passed by thirty minutes ago, and you were zoinked out!!” She flaunted her hand out the window, her tone that of scolding a young child.
“I'mma not a kid!” Adam couldn't believe how oddly young he sounded, pouncing off the bench he began to dart off down the waterlogged sidewalk.
“Whoa!, kid, it's dangerous to be running through the rain!” He heard the woman yell after him before being drowned out by the growing storm.
The rain was pouring down violently now, weighing down his clothes massively as he struggled to run back towards that cursed house. This tape clearly had something to do with his voice changing, foot slipping he tumbled forward into a large puddle of mud with a crash. His eyes stung from the filth covering his face as he noticed he had stepped out of his shoes.
He thought maybe his feet seemed smaller?
Or that his pants had somehow become longer?
That couldn't be unless he was shrinking. The mere thought made his stomach tighten into knots. Had the woman been seeing him as a young girl before, was he somehow changing physically? So many questions raced through his head as he pulled himself to his barefoot, stumbling towards the bleak shadow that was his new house.
Its horrid shadow sent chills down his spine, each step off balance as he slipped again. Falling forward against the old wooden door, he winced, feeling as if he was being beaten down by invisible fists all over. The door suddenly swinging open by itself, he went crashing to the floor in defeat.
It wanted him near. It needed him for some unknown purpose. Tape held close to his chest, Adam stumbled helplessly towards the first floor bathroom. Light flickering eerily, he took hesitant steps closer towards his reflection.
His once tall impressive frame seemed diminished now more around five-eight. His clothes soaking wet were loose on him now, extremely heavy as it caused him to droop his shoulders, or maybe they were narrowed? Breathing, becoming more panicked, he noticed his eyes were far larger, almost glowing a vibrant, colorful orange.
'What in the hay is happenin’ to me!!” He screamed in a shrill, youthful voice.
