The Year Of Rain

Winter storm

A/N: Ugh! This one took longer than I planned, but hopefully, it was worth the wait. Also, if you see grammatical errors, especially with the letter "e", sorry about that. My keyboard is kind of dying on me, unfortunately. Sorry about that.

WARNING: Foul language and hart breaking themes used (as if that's new, right?)

It was hardly morning, the light of the sun barely tapping against the darkness, the moon having yet to recede from her spot on the sky's throne. The air was chilling, roads once clean now covered in snow from the overnight storm. Everything was silent, drenched in white and grey, a landscape suited for how she felt.

She tapped her foot against the ground, looking around, curses swimming into her mind as the minutes went by and there were no sights of the darned train in sight. Olaf stood beside her, trying to cough as discreetly as possible as to not alert his sister any more than she already was. Ever since that doctor called, she had been on edge, checking every corner, every shadow, locking any window, door, and crawlspace she could find. And he couldn't blame for he knew the reason why all too well.

The SCP Foundation, one of the biggest headaches any supernatural-enthusiast could come across. Their desire, to protect humanity from the creatures lurking in the dark, be it reality or one owns mind, was honorable, something that demanded respect. There were many dangers in the world, things which should never have come into existence, having creeped into the world from the darkest edges of the universe where only chaos and terror reigned. Creatures whose name should not be spoken, whose visage should never be looked upon, diseases, monsters, machinations of man that went catastrophically wrong. They should be contained indeed, kept away from man and they did so...but sometimes Olaf had to wonder if their methods were right, if the cost was justified...and if some of those creatures deserved to be there.

He closed his eyes, recalling a little, overly jolly, orange, bubbly creature which loved nothing more than to put a smile on someone's face. Beyond the stiff high personal's back, everyone gave him nicknames, from Tickly, Coco, Jolly, Smiley, etc., treating him with kindness and love, carrying for him as if he were a mere baby. Yet what did all of that mean if he was denied the most basic of right, freedom? Yes, he was needed there. Yes, without him the Foundation would have had a much harder time dealing with the anomalies. But he wasn't the only one though. And that wasn't the only problem the organization had.

Always looking for the best way to protect humanity, their methods would reach unspeakable lengths, sometimes making others question whether or not the goal justified the cost. Fortunately, Olaf didn't have to participate in any of those cases, being nothing but a lowly employee, tasted with only the most menial of tasks as he was young and inexperienced. But the guilt still lingered in the back of his mind, deep down in his heart, coiling around him, suffocating him. He left, albeit with hesitation, for he had many great friends there and had grown close to some of the creatures held captive, but it was too much for him. With his tail between his legs, and coward written all over him by his own consciousness, he left the Foundation and returned home, deciding to dedicate his life to helping others keep the supernatural creatures in check to the best of their abilities, away from the eyes and ears of the O5 council.

"Come on! Come on! What the hell is taking that freaking train so much!?" Gertrude screamed, looking at the railings.

"Calm down, sister. Screaming won't help us now." It never did but he didn't say that. She was already angry, no use in making it worse.

Unlike her brother who had some sort of compassion for the Foundation and its employees, Gertrude held no such views. She hated them with a passion, calling them useless and stupid, a bunch of self-righteous idiots which more often than not, complicated things. She had her own run-ins with Foundation members, and few ended well. When they offered her an opportunity to join their ranks, she let them know what she thought of them without regard for what may come after. Fortunately, Olaf left the Foundation before that, so he didn't have to deal with the consequences either.