It was a little before two in the morning, so everyone in the house was sound asleep.
Indy was jolted awake by an unnerving sound that seemed to be coming from right outside her window.
The sound of a child crying.
It was not unusual for Indy to experience vivid and horrific nightmares since her ordeal, but at least the sounds stopped when she came fully awake.
This time, the crying continued.
Trembling, Indy went to the window, threw up the shade, and looked out.
She could see nothing, but the crying continued.
Opening the window made the sound louder. It was very close to the house.
"Who's there?" Indy called out.
There was no reply except for more crying.
Indy called again, and nothing changed.
Rattled, Indy retreated to switch on a light, then returned to the window.
The crying had stopped, and she could see no one outside.
Hitting the light, Indy crawled back under the covers.
To her great unease, the crying started up again, and this time, it sounded even closer, as if it was right in the room with her.
Badly shaken, Indy jumped out of bed and ran for the door. If this was a dream or hallucination, it was better to face the possibility of something being wrong with her than suffer in silence. If it was not, and there really was someone out there, it was better to do what could be done about it.
She got startled again when she opened the door and found Elsa Elf just on the other side of it.
"Indy, are you okay?" the elf asked.
Indy shuddered.
"Sorry if I startled you, but I thought I heard someone crying down here."
"Then I wasn't just imagining it." said Indy, looking at Elsa with a mixture of relief and confusion. "It woke me up. Sounded like it was coming from - there it is again." Indy shuddered, and turned on the light.
Elsa darted past her and into the room, apparently having seen or recognized the source of the sound. "There's someone there all right."
There was a sharp intake of breath from the hunched up little figure on the floor as the elf took a firm hold of it. The crying stopped.
"I've got her, Indy, you might want to shut and lock the window."
Indy did just that, and then, badly shaken, she collapsed on her bed, trembling. "How did - " then Indy got a good look at the thing that had come in apparently through the window. she gave a horrified gasp. "Call 9-11!"
the little girl stood up and looked around at Elsa and Indy. She had curly brown hair, much of it spattered with blood, an open wound to the side of her head, tattered nightgown with the word "Sally" sewn on the front, dirty feet, and scratches and scrapes. She looked like she had been in a terrible struggle and worse for the wear. Her hands and face were bloody. Her eyes were a bright green.
"What the - !?" Indy gaped.
The little girl spoke up, throwing everyone off. "This is my house."
"It is our house too." Elsa corrected gently.
The little girl trembled and twitched as if in fear or pain, but turned her head to look at Elsa. "Play with me." she requested.
Elsa shook her head. "Not right now, pumpkin." Then, she looked at Indy. "I'd like to be sure this isn't a sick prank before we risk calling in a false alarm."
"What the heck? She looks like she's covered in blood." Indy finally got out.
The elf still didn't seem to be fazed. "She appears to be, but if she really was as bad as she looks, would she be asking to play with us?"
"I don't get it." Indy put a hand to her head.
Elsa looked at the little girl. "So who are you, and what are you doing here?"
"Play with me." The little girl repeated.
"I said, not now."
The little girl hung her head, apparently understanding the message and the firm tone in which it was given.
"I just don't get it." said Indy.
"It's not as bad as it looks now, though it was at one time." said Elsa. "That's if my theory is correct." Then addressing the little girl, she asked, "Are you Sally Williams?"
The girl nodded.
"What's going on in here? Indy?" Pippi had opened the door and was just stepping in. She gasped, eyes going wide. "Oh my gosh!"
"Don't panic, everyone," Elsa announced firmly. "I think we have a dealive guest." she explained, then turned back to Sally. "what was your father's name?"
"Frank." came the response.
"Good. and your mother?"
"Marie."
The elf nodded and smiled at the little girl, then continued. "Who hurt you and called it a game?"
Sally looked dismayed. "Uncle Johnny."
"As I thought."
Sally started to cry again, but Elsa consoled her, and Indy looked on, troubled.
Pippi went and sat next to Indy on the bed. "Do you recognize her from any of the chain letters you've smashed?"
"No. Most of them claim to be missing eyes and noses, but then again, I can't remember every single one offhand."
"Indy, Pippi, This is Sally Williams." Elsa informed them. "Yes, she was attacked, but not recently."
"That looks recent enough to me." said Pippi.
"It's how she looks to freak people out. It's all part of her game." Elsa replied. "Am I right about that, Sally?"
The little girl shrunk back, trying to avoid eye contact with Elsa.
The elf was not having that. "Now, game's over, Sally, look at me." She put a hand at the back of Sally's head and gently guided it so Sally would have to look her in the eyes.
Sally trembled.
"We're not going to hurt you, dear, but it's the middle of the night. It's time to sleep, not for playing games. Do you understand?"
Sally nodded.
"Well, if it's all the same to you guys, I'd just as soon not sleep here tonight." said Indy.
"That works out even better." said Elsa. You get the couch up there, and I'll stay down here with Sally for the remainder of the night." The elf gave Sally's shoulder a gentle squeeze and smiled pleasantly at her. "And we're going to get you a new nightgown and clothes tomorrow."
"Well," Pippi said, smiling at Elsa, "It looks like things are well in hand."
"Yes. We'll be fine." Elsa replied.
"Good rest of the night, all." said Pippi, and she left, followed by Indy.
"Okay, Sally, in all the excitement, I completely forgot to tell you our names. My two friends are Pippi and Indianna. You're spending the night in Indy's room. She's a little unnerved, so she's gonna be up on the main floor. and my name is Elsa."
"Did I scare Indy?"
"Yes, I think you did."
Sally giggled.
"Not in a fun way, Sally." Elsa reminded her. "She isn't scared you will get her. She was horrified by your - injuries. Indy is sorry for you."
Sally frowned, though Elsa couldn't tell if it was from confusion or disappointment.
"When will you play with me?" Sally asked.
"Not until later on tomorrow, after you get your new clothes." replied Elsa.
"Aww."
"But now, it's time for you to wash up and go to sleep. I'll show you where."
The elf took Sally by the arm, opened the door and left with her.
Sally could only ponder as this strange little person who clearly was not afraid of her, was treating her more like the little kid she was rather than a scary monster.
Pippi soon heard a knock on her door, and went to answer it. She looked out in surprise to see Elsa standing there.
"May I come in for a minute?"
"Sure. How are things working out with Sally?"
"All right for now, she's in the shower, and I just need to find something else for her to wear. That nightgown is atrocious. but I came to talk to you about her."
"I might have a shirt that's long enough for her to use as a nightgown," said Pippi, "so what can you tell me about this girl?"
Elsa scowled. "Sally Williams became dealive after her uncle Johnny tried to kill her to shut her up since he molested her. Now the creepy pasta says she appears as a crying, injured girl whose catchphrase is 'play with me'."
Pippi grimaced with dismay. "I'm not familiar with that story, but the question is why would she come here, and what to do about her. We don't know where her parents are, and I assume she already got vengeance against her uncle?"
Elsa shook her head. "she cannot go back to her parents. They didn't believe her story as anything but a vivid nightmare. They do not know Johnny is the one who 'killed' her, they believe she is dead... Johnny was never caught."
Pippi nodded. She could see the look of determination on the elf's face. Sally had come here for help, whether purposefully or not, and Elsa would make sure she was seen to properly.
Some time later, Sally had washed up, and she found a clean shirt waiting just outside the shower room door for her. It was miles too big on her for a shirt, but it would do for a nightgown.
Elsa was there, back turned, and working with a mobile device. When she heard Sally open the door, she said to her, "The shirt is your PJs for tonight. Take it back in to the shower room and put it on, and I'll be waiting for you out here."
"Okay, Elsa." Sally said, and disappeared behind the door again.
After a while, Sally came out again, and Elsa took her back to Indy's room, where they would both sleep.
But first, Elsa helped Sally brush her hair. This gave her the opportunity to examine her to be sure the blood had been washed away and that Sally was not still bleeding.
"Hmm, we'll have to get you a toothbrush tomorrow as well. For tonight, you'll just have to go to sleep without."
"Will you play with me?" Sally asked.
"Not now, Sally. It's time to sleep."
Sally looked at Elsa, then suddenly burst into tears.
"Shh, shh," the elf put her arms around the little dealive girl and rocked her back and forth. "They only thought it was a bad dream. But I believe you. It was real."
Sally nodded weakly and cried herself to sleep in Elsa's arms.
The elf sat up, holding the child until her arms ached. Then, she gently lay her down, taking great care not to awaken her. She covered her up with the blanket, and stood for a moment to make sure the girl would remain asleep.
Sally didn't stir.
Smiling, Elsa crawled into the bed she set up for herself just by the door, and took some time to drop off, but eventually fell into a peaceful sleep.