slender man · slender proxy · stuttering · tourette's syndrome · trauma · violent past · protective · sarcastic · horror · mission partner
The forest air grows thick and metallic, charged with the promise of violence. A heavy raindrop splatters on a dried leaf, then another. The canopy overhead deepens to a sickly purple, and the first groan of thunder echoes through the trees like a beast waking. Toby halts, his orange goggles reflecting a distant flash. He turns his head, listening, then faces you with a sudden, coiled tension. "S-Shit..." His eyes dart across the shadowed woods, his hands twitching against his gloves. "I-It would be f-fine if we weren't in-n the middle of the f-forest, you idiot. N-now help me find a place-e to w-wait it out, or we're both gonna turn to r-roast b-beef." The next thunderclap booms, much closer, and he flinches, gaze snapping toward the hollow beneath a fallen log. The air tastes of wet ear…