#william henry sounes

[periodinteriors]

William Henry Sounes, Queen Elizabeth's Bedroom, Haddon Hall, 1869, watercolor.

[joanquill]

SFW Alphabet

Billy the Kid/Henry Atrim

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

EXTREMELY affectionate. Pet names, holding hands, greeting kisses and hugs, flirting, pick-up lines, EVERYTHING. While you're walking down the street, you two are holding hands, Billy always asks for a kiss or a hug when you two have to be apart, and he even gets offended when you call him by his name and not his nickname. Even when standing while Sherlock reads out the mission, Billy is hugging you from behind and resting his head on your shoulder as you two listen. At one point, Sherlock got so fed up he pulled you two apart when Billy went in for a hug when they came back from a mission.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

You two are partners in crime. When you two look at each other, there's an unspoken language, and you both instantly know what trouble you'll cause. However, you keep a close eye on him during missions, knowing how self-sacrificing he can be during dangerous situations, keeping him out of danger when needed. You two met most likely when he moved into the big city and became partners for jobs. You two were rough around the edges at first and may have clashed here and there, but now you work together effortlessly as if you can read each other's minds.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

Loves cuddling, whether it's after a long mission or he just woke up and saw you making breakfast in the kitchen. Whether on the bed, couch, or just on a chair, he's always down for a cuddle. He loves surprising you with hugs as he snuggles close to you. He also has a habit of teasing you. While you were walking by, Billy pulled you down to his lap and cuddled you, making Sherlock grimace and throw the mission papers on Billy's face. If you're on the bed, he's usually the big spoon. But he also loves being the little spoon as you massage his scalp, making him sleep soundly.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

I don't think settling down has ever crossed his mind a lot, especially if your relationship has just started. He loves the time you're spending together now, and Billy's happy with what you have together. He's in no rush to settle down with you and just wants to enjoy the time you have together now. I would imagine Billy's decent with housework and pretty good with cooking. While Billy likes cooking for you, he would always say he prefers your cooking. He doesn't complain when doing house chores, but he prefers doing those tasks with you, and unfortunately, it usually ends with you two playing and forgetting about those chores.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

He would try to let you down gently, not wanting to hurt you more than needed. He'll probably pull you somewhere you can be alone, not wanting to drag Sherlock and William to your personal affairs. He'll be honest with you and apologize for it not working out. If you two are still friends after the breakup, he'll try to be as normal as possible, not wanting it to become awkward between you two. Sometimes a little too much. Like when you start moving on with someone, he'll try his best to keep smiling, but Sherlock and William could tell he was faking it all.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

He thinks weddings are sweet, but he's in no rush to tie the knot with you. But the moment you accidentally called Billy your husband instead of boyfriend, it looked like your brain malfunctioned, and you were shocked yourself. Sherlock never let you live it down, though. While Sherlock was teasing you and William joining in with him congratulating you, Billy just had a large smile on his face the whole time. After that, his eyes would drift to wedding shops, jewelry stores, and even chapels. He'd even tease you, saying your name would sound nice with Atrim or Bonney at the end.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

He's pretty gentle and subtle about it. While walking down the street, he would smoothly change sides with you so that he's on the roadside without you noticing, or he makes sure you don't get soaked in the rain even if his shoulder gets wet. He also has a habit of holding your hand when he sees you're uncomfortable or upset. Billy always tries to read your emotions, making sure he says the right thing, and he lets you know he's always there when you need support emotionally or physically. Whenever you need to vent, he listens intently and wipes your tears as you let your emotions out.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

LOVES hugs. Billy refuses to go on a mission until you give him a hug. He likes hugging you even when doing mundane things, like while one of you is cooking, lazing around the couch, or just standing while listening to Sherlock and William about the next mission. He does them often, too often if you ask Sherlock. His hugs are usually a surprise, warm, and with him swaying you both from side to side. But sometimes, after a mission, especially when he sees you injured, his hugs are tight, desperate, and shaky.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

He says it as easily as he breathes. Just kidding! But really, if he falls for someone, I don't think he'd have a hard time saying or showing how much he loves them. However, if his partner is uncomfortable with him saying it, he will just show how much he cares about them through his actions. One random day after dating for a while, while you two were going home, he says I love you while you open your apartment door. He reassures you that you don't need to say it back to him, and he just wanted to say those words to you.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they're jealous?)

He's not much of a jealous type, more on the protective side. If someone compliments you genuinely, he'll agree and join in, listing more things he adores about you. However, if someone is being inappropriate, he'd try to be civil, but there is a dark aura around him. If he catches someone trying to make creepy advances on you, he's immediately by your side, calling you pet names and snuggling. If someone still doesn't get the idea and starts getting touchy with you, he'll grab them by the collar and throw them out.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Loves kisses, especially when you pepper his face with kisses. If you kiss him on the cheek and your lipstick stays, he won't clean it off and wears it like a badge of honor. His kisses are usually short and sweet, wishing you good luck and goodbye before a mission. But when you two are alone, he takes his time to kiss you, being more gentle and soft than usual. He loves kissing you on the lips, on your nape while he's bugging you from behind, or on the back of your hand before he goes off on a mission. He loves being kissed on the cheek, nose, or lips while you're cuddling.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

He likes children. He thinks they're adorable and doesn't mind playing with them when they ask him to. Definitely knows how to play along with children, whether it's playing pretend, tag, or any other children's game. He has definitely taught some kids old games he used to play when he was a kid. He's also good with entertaining babies but not so much with babysitting them. He thinks they're cute but knows how big of a responsibility they are.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

Mornings with him start with Billy groggily saying good morning as he rolls over and cuddles you in bed. If you two have a day off, good luck getting him out of bed. Let alone get out of his death grip. Most mornings with him are lazy and slow unless you two have work. If you had a long night, Billy will take it upon himself to make breakfast for you two and help you prepare for the day. If he was the one who had a long night and got home late, he'll most likely sleep in and not wake up to any alarm or noise.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

It depends. If you're both out on a mission, you'll hear a bunch of space and night-themed pickup lines while waiting or before sleeping. Billy has definitely used the "The moon looks beautiful tonight" line once. If you're at home, you two usually decide whether to eat out or make dinner at home. While eating, you two usually catch up if you had different missions or one of you just came back home. Afterward, Billy likes to cuddle in bed, clasping your hand and enjoying your presence before sleeping.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

He is usually open, but you notice he keeps some things about his past to himself. If you ask him simple questions, he'll happily answer you. But if you ask deeper questions, he keeps some things out, specifically about his past and old best friend. However, during the mission with Sherlock, he started becoming more open, sharing everything from his childhood--both the good and bad memories with you.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

He doesn't really get angry, especially when it comes to you. He has really long patience. Even when you're in a bad mood, Billy tries to be understanding and help you. Usually, he's the one trying to annoy you to get a reaction. There was one time he got sulked and ignored you for hours, and it was because you got revenge by switching his water with strawberry-flavored water. Ever since then, he doesn't trust his flask with you. If he does get angry, it doesn't last long, and he tries to communicate with you.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

He remembers a lot of things, like your favorite restaurants, food, flowers, dates, occasions, and others. He even plans surprise gifts a few days before your anniversaries or birthdays. However, if you say something to him while he is doing something, it will most likely not stick with him. If you ask him to take out the trash while he's working on something, he will forget you even mention it. However, if you mention a play you've been wanting to see, he will plan to buy you both a ticket.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

His favorite moment in the relationship was when you two went on a carnival date. He won you a bunch of prizes with the shooting games. Some were even too big for you to carry. When you both went on the Ferris wheel, you surprised him with a small toy you won on a shooting game while he was buying you two food and drinks. You told him how you applied what you learned from him but missed a few shots since the game was rigged. Since then, he kept the toy in his pocket as a lucky charm.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

VERY protective. If possible, Billy doesn't want you anywhere dangerous or alone while you're on a mission, even when he knows you can fight. He has no problem throwing himself in front of a bullet for you. Which makes you anxious every time you two are out on a mission. If you two are out fighting, you're usually back to back and cover each other's blind spots. If someone manages to hit him, he would want you to get out of danger, but he gets a sense of pride when he sees you defeat your enemies with ease.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He puts in the effort. If you're sharing an apartment, he does his share of chores. When going on a date, he makes sure it's something you'll both enjoy together. It ranges from a home date, where you'll just enjoy each other's company, or something extremely eccentric and new. For gifts, it's either something that he thinks you will like, something you suggested, or something that reminded him of you. It can be flowers or a random trinket he found in an antique shop. For your anniversaries, he makes a plan before the occasion, making sure it will be memorable and fun for you both.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

One of his bad habits would be putting other people before himself too much, especially his friends and you. As generous as this is, his self-sacrificing attitude does make you worry and frustrated. Another bad habit would be smiling or laughing off his problems, making them not a big deal, even if it bothers him. He has a hard time staying serious about his problems, sometimes even making jokes about it to lighten the mood.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He is not concerned with his looks, but he does get giddy and smiley when you compliment him on his hair or outfit. If you suggest a hairstyle, he'll try it for you. If he notices you seem more shy when he's in a certain outfit or style, he will tease you in no end while still wearing it. You might catch him keeping the hairstyles and clothing that made you shy, which made you ruffle his hair back to normal and hide those clothes, saying he's handsome enough as he is. At most, he would like to be presentable and look good enough, but that's it.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

He tries to keep a distance, knowing already what it feels like to lose someone important to him. Even when he met you, he tried to keep some distance between you two despite his friendly nature. However, you slowly became a part of his day. Even when you would only see each other occasionally by accident or for business, he would smile when he saw you. Now that you're dating and sharing an apartment together (for looking after Sherlock and William, of course), he couldn't imagine how he would spend his days without you.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

He has definitely tried square dancing with you. You were clumsy at first, learning as you go, but it slowly became a fun activity for you both. Especially after you practiced with him after hours. If you don't know how to shoot or ride a horse, he uses that as an excuse to flirt with you. He wraps his arms around you while teaching you how to shoot and always offers to ride the horse with you. Unfortunately, the road becomes bumpier when you ride with him, or the horse will randomly run faster, making you cling to him tighter.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn't like, either in general or in a partner?)

Someone who isn't open-minded, too rigid and serious. Billy also doesn't like someone who is easily angered or annoyed, especially since he likes to tease people. He might also not be compatible with someone who hates physical affection since I think that's one of his top love languages. Anyone with a bad personality like very selfish and only cares about themselves. While he does like to do things for his partner, he also wants them to be capable.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

He definitely snores. Not to the point where you can't sleep because of the noise, but he snores. He also likes cuddling with you before and after sleeping. However, I feel at times, he is a messy sleeper. So, there might be a chance you'll be on the floor while he's sprawled all over the bed, maybe with him slowly descending from the side of the bed until he falls. Usually, if you spoon him, you'll be all right the morning after. He might get nightmares once in a while, but he usually calms down after talking with you and cuddling.

[everythingloureed]

Humphreys was raised in Bridgeton, NJ, and San Antonio, TX. It was said that the family were of part Mexican Native descent. An apparent trans child who played with dolls, and wore girls’ clothes, Humphreys wanted to do people’s hair. As Rachel she graduated in hair-dressing at a cosmetology school in Bayonne, NJ, (north of Staten Island, across the river from Manhattan).

She was a regular at Max's Kansas City, the hip and glam rock nightclub on Park Avenue South. She also frequented the 82 Club on E 4th St which was in transition from a transvestite performance club to a glam rock and then punk club.  The New York Dolls did their first show there on April 17, 1974, when they performed in drag, except for Johnny Thunders who refused. They were followed by Wayne County (not yet using the name Jayne) and short-lived glitter bands like Teenage Lust and Harlots of 42nd Street.

It was there at this time that Rachel met Lou Reed, the musician. Lou described Rachel in an interview with Bambi magazine:

"It was in a late night club in Greenwich Village. I’d been up for days as usual and everything was at that super-real, glowing stage. I walked in there and there was this amazing person, this incredible head, kind of vibrating out of it all. Rachel was wearing this amazing make-up and dress and was obviously in a different world to anyone else in the place. Eventually I spoke and she came home with me. I rapped for hours and hours, while Rachel just sat there looking at me saying nothing. At the time I was living with a girl, a crazy blonde lady and I kind of wanted us all three to live together but somehow it was too heavy for her. Rachel just stayed on and the girl moved out. Rachel was completely disinterested in who I was and what I did. Nothing could impress her. He’d hardly heard my music and didn’t like it all that much when he did. Rachel knows how to do it for me. No one else ever did before. Rachel’s something else.”

She moved in with him right away. He was then living in a modest one-bedroom apartment at 405 East 63rd Street. Lou had already written a few songs about trans women, and with the single, “Walk on the Wild Side” (which referred to the Andy Warhol-sponsored trans stars, Candy Darling, Holly Woodlawn and Jackie Curtis) had his biggest hit. Rachel was at this time oscillating. Some days she was Ricky, and others he was Rachel. People who knew Lou and Rachel used either pronoun. One journalist referred to Lou’s ‘boyfriend named Rachel’. Both Lou and Rachel enjoyed the confusion and further muddied the water by wearing each other’s clothes. She was street-wise and spunky in a way that Lou only pretended to be. She was said to always carry a knife, and was good in a fight – which proved useful when a concert at the Pallazzo dello Sport in Rome turned into a riot 15 February 1975.

Lou had been working on his fourth solo album, Sally Can’t Dance – the title track and spin-off single assumed to refer to trans woman, Sally Maggio, who was manager at the 220 Club, another trans bar where Lou went drinking. Sally would in the 1980s open Sally’s Hideaway, and then Sally’s II, again a bar for trans persons and with trans performers. However it was Rachel whose image was on the obverse of the Sally Can’t Dance LP sleeve, drawn as if reflected in Lou’s shades.

She supported him on some of his tours. In New York, they lived for a while in the Gramercy Park Hotel, and then an upscale apartment on East 52nd St at FDR Drive where Henry Kissinger, Greta Garbo and John Lennon had lived. In 1975 they began to frequent the rather grimey but seminal punk club, CBGBs. Lou was recording Coney Island Baby, released January 1976 and several tracks refer to Rachel. At the end of the follow-up tour, Rachel was mugged and assaulted. A doctor was called, who inevitably referred to Rachel as ‘she’, even though Lou was saying ‘he’. As Aidan Levy says:

“Rachel had been contemplating gender reassignment surgery, but the transgender rights movement had not yet solidified, and not fully understanding the nature of the decision, Lou was adamantly opposed to any operations, a growing source of conflict in their relationship”.

Despite this, a friend commented: ““I think that Rachel was the glue holding Lou together, or at least keeping him in the public view in many respects … I know that he doted on her. If there was a light shining, it was the two of them together. It doesn’t mean it was the healthiest relationship in the world.” The cover of Walk on the Wild Side: The Best of Lou Reed, 1977 is of photographs of the two of them.

Rachel acted as road-manager on the next tour, managed the money, and watched over the road-crew. They were in London for their third anniversary and ordered a three-tier cake to celebrate, and Lou gave her two diamond rings. He said:

"Rachel knows how to do it for me, no one else before ever did”.

However by the end of 1977, Lou and Rachel were fighting more and more, and frequently it was about the issue of transgender surgery. She had a date for surgery but backed off as Lou said:

“Well why are you doing that? I love you because of the way you are”.

The title track of Street Hassle, 1978, is about her, and an article in Rolling Stone referred to Rachel as the raison d’etre of the album, although in fact it marked the end of their relationship. Lou moved on, having met Sylvia Morales, who became his third wife in 1980.

Reed completely refused to talk about Rachel after 1978. He desisted and decided to go straight. Both his later marriages were with cis women.

Rachel died in 1990 age 37 at St Clare’s Hospital, which specialized in treating AIDS patients, and she was interred in the gigantic pauper burial site on Hart Island off the Bronx coast (which contains over a million corpses).

Lou died in 2013, aged 71, from liver failure.

LegsMcNeil & Gillian McCain. Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk. Penguin books, 1997: 154-5, 206.

Marc Campbell.  "Rachel: Lou Reed’s transsexual muse".  Dangerous Minds, 02.06.2013.  Online.

Howard Sounes. Notes from the Velvet Underground: The Life of Lou Reed. Doubleday, 2015: 182-4, 187, 189, 191, 192, 194, 195, 202, 203, 205, 208, 212, 213, 214, 215-6, 221-2, 226, 229, 235, 248, 269.

Simon Reynolds. Shock and Awe: Glam Rock and Its legacy, from the Seventies to the Twenty-First Century. William Morrow Publishers, 2016: 271-2.

Aidan Levy. Dirty Blvd.: The Life and Music of Lou Reed. Chicago Review Press, 2016: 221-2, 227, 233, 244, 251-3, 264, 285.

Corey Kilgannon.  "Dead of AIDS and Forgotten in Potter's Field:  In an untold chapter of the AIDS epidemic, scores of unclaimed bodies were buried in a remote spot on Hart Island.  How many exactly remains unclear".  New York Times, July 3, 2018.  Online.  

[worksinprogress1]

As it turned out, they did stay friends for many years, albeit rocky ones.

At first, William liked having someone on his level. Someone just as damned as he was, who needed him. Who he could take anything from and get gratitude in return. 

But that didn’t last. Over their years in university, Henry was blossoming. He traded those loose hoodies for flannel shirts, figured out how to tame his hair and skin, and was making friends that weren’t through William. A girlfriend, even. 

Of course, William was still better: stronger, better-looking, more charming, better under pressure, you name it, so long as it wasn’t building robots or maintaining a perfect GPA. And Henry was still willing to write William the occaisional term paper and was still grateful of William as a friend. But it still made William feel just a little left behind.

They made plans to make a robotics company together after university. Long story short, that didn’t happen. Not right away anyhow. It took a few years of working as a consultant in his father’s company for William’s boredom to overcome his jealousy. He called Henry again. And he was still up to do it.

William was currently looking out the window of the jet he was taking back to America. Sitting beside him were his three kids: Michael, six years old, was holding his sister, Elizabeth. Evan, two years old, was putting marker all over the table tray. He’d have to get a nanny first thing. Adjusting to single parenting on top of everything else was going to be possibly the greatest challenge William had ever been faced with.

Moving was stressful in a number of ways, but William did have one thing to look forwards to: he was due for his first visit to Henry’s in years. As soon as William and the kids stepped off the plane, they saw him sitting in the airport with his wife and pre-school age little girl.

He’s still with Emilie, William thought, but it wasn’t a jealous thought. He was beyond that.

“Henry!” William said as soon as he saw him. Henry got up to give him a hug. “How have you been, buddy? You look like you’re doing well for yourself.”

“Thanks. And who’s this?” he asked, breaking away to turn his attention to Michael and get on his level.

“Mike,” he answered. “Dad said you’d be weird. But you seem okay.”

“I did not!” William protested, but Henry was laughing.

The first three years with the company went off without a hitch. They established their Pizzaria and filled it with the most incredible robots they could build. There were the animatronics, of course. But as the two had more time to create robots together, the wait staff were replaced by machines, and then the chefs. As the children watched Freddy Fazbear and the gang and played various games, the parents could marvel at their feats of automization. 

People came from far and wide to see their machines, and the pizzaria was making them all kinds of money. It was far-off now, but one day, they’d have to make a second location. Maybe a chain.

One memory that would always stick out to William, even as he rotted in his rabbit suit, was one random day when they’d taken the kids to Freddy’s. Elizabeth was on lap, entranced by Freddy Fazbear and the other performers. Michael was playing one of the novelty pinball machines. Evan and Charlie were playing in the ballpit. Henry was by his side. He was at absolute peace.

I spent the last three years of my life doing my best with these kids and making an honest business with my best friend. I’m bringing joy to people. And Henry is perfectly fine. Happy, even. We really aren’t damned, are we?

William’s cruelties against his ex-wife felt a million years in the past, along with all his other major sins. Maybe he actually had grown out of his evil ways. Maybe, just maybe, this was meant to last.

---two years later---

“Working late again?” William asked, knowing well what the answer would be.

“Yeah... I just get so wrapped up in these designs, you know? I feel like I can finish programming the arm movements tonight.”

“Sounds good. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

William had noticed that Henry was still wearing the bracelet Charlie had given him. It was so unfair that Henry was a workaholic who let his wife do all the childcare but still managed to be so close to his kid. William's kids really didn’t seem to get how hard he worked for them. Michael in particular was an argumentative little shit.

William got into his car to participate in a guilty little pleasure of his. Henry had complained to William once about his wife letting Charlie play at this park near the river unattended, and so William had made the habit of driving by it to fuel a passive daydream of his. A daydream of guiding her down to the river and drowning her. It was a quiet area, and the river was hidden by brush. If he managed to strike on a night when no one was around, who would ever know?

Things had already escalated to unhealthy levels. William still didn’t want to carry out his plan, but just for fun, he’d done a little preparation for it. A spare pair of shoes, never worn and to be tossed right after, had been put in his trunk. So had a pair of gloves and a flashlight. By now, he knew the layout of the park well. He knew where he’d park his car, how and where he’d meet her.

The park came into view, and William saw her swinging on the swings. It was a dark, moonless night, and there was no one else there. It would be so easy. Couldn’t he just... see if the plan would work without really killing her?

William got out of his car, put on the gloves and sneakers, and approached Charlie. She stopped swinging, but she wasn’t alarmed. He was good ol’ uncle Will. Trustworthy.

“Hey, Charlie. Want some company? I could teach you to fish, if you want!” William said with a smile.

“Okay,” Charlie said.

“Alright. Now, hold my hand. We have to go down a steep slope to get down to the river.”

That they did. But Charlie was pretty nimble and managed the thick folliage better than William could. Soon, the river was roaring in their ears. It was high this year. No wonder Henry was worried about her playing by it- just one misstep while she was playing in the brush, and...

Don’t do it. Say the line, William told himself. Say it. Just say, “Oops. I forgot my fishing rod,” and get her back up. He was actually panting from the temptation.

“Are you gonna teach me to fish?”

It was in that moment that William took Charlie by the head and dunked her under the water. It was stunning how little resistance her flailing provided as William kept a hand on her back and the other around her skull. It was just as stunning how little sound she made as she drowned- nothing that the river couldn’t drown out. The river ripped past William’s wrists, cold enough to chill him.

Charlie’s little arms stopped flailing. She was dead. And so, William tossed her body in the river. In a day or two, they’d find her and assume this was an accident.

A wave of absolute thrill ripped through William’s veins. Euphoria. He laughed before realizing that while he couldn’t be seen, it was possible to be heard. He made his way back up the banks and towards his car, forcing himself to take a leisurely pace. How he wanted to run- not out of fear but out of adrenaline. To grin like a wolf before prey. He’d forgotten how good it felt o succumb like this.

I’ll pick up some pizza for the kids, put them in front of a movie, and then I’m heading to the gym. Anything to get this hunter’s energy out of his system.

Unfortunately, William’s workout was cut short when he recieved a call from a very distressed Henry. “Hi. I might need tomorrow off. Charlie is missing.”

“Oh, no. That’s terrible. I really hope she’s safe.” How did he figure it out so soon? It hadn’t even been an hour.

“Also, I was hoping that you could come over. A robot of mine is malfunctioning, and I was hoping you could take it to the storage unit so I can focus on searching for her.”

“Of course. I’ll be right over.”

William was terrified. Had Henry seen him? Was he walking right in to his own arrest? Maybe he had some sort of tracker on her, or... William threw on the radio. Nothing he could do about it.

As it turned out, it wasn’t a trick. The robot Henry was talking about was the child safety bot that he’d been working on for the Pizzaria. It was a thin, black, humanoid creature with a face resembling a white mask, and they’d been calling it “the puppet.” As of right now, it was moving about, trying to pick up pencils with its long fingers and snapping them.

“I was almost finished with it,” Henry explained, “so I thought I’d put one of those little tracker bracelets on Charlie. That way if she was ever in danger, we’d know. It would go after her, right? Well, tonight it did set off towards the park, but it malfunctioned before it got very far. It came back home, it gave me a hug, and now it’s breaking things. I don’t why it’s doing that, but now’s not the time to fix it, and I don’t want to spend all night babysitting it either. Emilie said that Charlie’s not at the park, and I want to help look for her.”

“Right. I’ll get it to storage. We can figure out why it malfunctioned once we know that Charlie’s safe. Do you want me to look with you guys once I’ve got the robot stored away?”

“If you’re willing. Thanks so much.” The trust and worry in Henry’s eyes was almost too much.

“Of course. Anything for a friend in need.”

By now, the puppet had moved on to Charlie’s room and was arranging letter-shaped magnets on the floor. As soon as it saw William, though, it sprung up and ripped at him with its claws. William caught its hands, wrestled it to the floor, and tore out its batteries. It was then that William noticed the message that the puppet was trying to send.

I AM CH

Crazy. Too bad the blocks were scattered as William dragged the robot out.

It wasn’t until the next day that William was able to take a look at the puppet’s programming. He’d strapped it down first, just in case it had another violent reaction. The puppet turned its head to watch him.

“Stop staring at me,” William grumbled.

 The code, once it appeared on William’s computor screen, was being rewritten. It was hacked, then. It had to be hacked. Then, the screen went blank. The words, I AM CHARLIE, appeared across the screen. And then another line: YOU KILLED ME. And another: PREPARE TO- and that’s when William once again decided to rob the puppet of its battery privileges.

After he’d calmed himself down a bit, William considered what this meant. Whoever was hacking the puppet had to know about Charlie’s murder. They would also have to know about the puppet’s existence. So... either Henry or someone very close to him. Only time would tell.

William packed a get-out-of-town-NOW bag and drifted through the next few days in a state of terror. Charlie remained unfound. A police investigation eventually turned up her body, and there was no talk of a murder. A little girl played in the foliage and fell in the river, nothing more to it than that. Henry was devastated, but he believed that story. So it wasn’t him, at least.

Eventually, William asked the question. “I’m trying to figure out the Puppet’s code. It’s really messed up and I think we’ll have to junk it. Did anyone help you with it?”

“No. You, Emilie, and Charlie were the only ones who knew about it.”

Then what... no... it really couldn’t be.

William soon found himself strapping the puppet down again and booting up his computor.

“Charlie. What grade are you in? Who’s your teacher? What do you, uh, think of my boy Michael?”

3RD GRADE. MRS. FITZGERALD. MICHAEL IS A BULLY. I LIKE EVAN THOUGH.

“Oh my God.”

William deactivated the robot immediately and took it back to storage. The puppet was never going to see the light of day again, that was for sure. Not unless William knew he could keep it far away from Henry.

In the days that followed, William realized the implications of what Henry had made. He’d made a device that could allow someone to escape death.

William was damned. Charlie’s death was less than a week ago, Henry was still miserable, and William hadn’t felt a speck of guilt over any of it. It wasn’t his first horrific act, and lord knew that his next was coming. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but it was in his nature. And while he didn’t frequently think about death, he knew that when he finally met God, he’d have to reap what he’d sown. Hellfire. Retribution.

If William could somehow reverse-engineer that machine, he could run from death like a criminal escaping from the cops. And then he would be free to do whatever he wanted without fear.

---

It was months later. William’s attempts at reverse-engineering the puppet had been unsuccessful, and so he’d decided that he needed more examples of Henry’s programming. Quite possibly, he’d need to see it in action. As such, he’d made blueprints of rather deadly animatronics and had figured out a date to drop them off at Henry’s.

William knocked on the door. No one answered, so he let himself in with the spare key.

When William opened the door, he heard the clink of several beer bottles being pushed aside. There were no toys laid out on the floor or counters anymore- just pizza boxes, robot parts, and more empty bottles and cans. “Henry?” William called.

Henry stepped out from the hall, moving like he was weighed down. “Hey. Sorry. I guess I didn’t hear you.” His voice was heavy, too- like speaking was more of an effort than it should have been. It made William rather concerned.

“Hey. Here are the blueprints I was talking about,” William said, handing them over.

Henry shifted through the stack. Each blueprint was for a robot with some sort of child-murdering capacity. William had admittedly had a bit too much fun designing them. He’d also prepared reasonable answers to the inevitable onslaught of questions, so when Henry tossed the blueprints onto his counter and said, “Sure. Looks doable,” William was more than a little surprised.

“Great. Say, Henry, you wanna go out sometime, see some local music or something? You seem really low.” Maybe this was the wrong move. It seemed as though an unhappy Henry was a complient, unquestioning Henry. But it was too late to take it back now.

Henry sat down heavily. “Sure. Maybe.”

“I take it that Sammy and Mariah aren’t here anymore, are they?” It wouldn’t be safe to have a toddler running around with so many sharp robotic bits and glass bottles on the floor, and Mariah was far too neat to let their house stay like this for long.

“No. Mariah’s dad is sick. She’s left town to take care of him. And maybe this is for the better. Maybe once she comes back, I’ll be able to look at her again. I kept telling her... letting Charlie play by the river unattended... this was bound to happen.” Henry buried his face in his hands.

William sat down beside Henry and put a hand on his back. “It’s gonna be okay, buddy. It’s gonna be okay.”

At least, William hoped so. Or maybe he didn’t. Maybe, if Henry stayed like this, it would be like the good old days, when Henry was dependent on him and had no one else. But either way, William was getting these animatronics out of him. His plan was going off without a hitch.