Art by  knuxlight!

Happy Halloween!

* * *

Ivan scrambled to his feet and almost ripped the door off its hinges when he opened it. He ran down the hallway and entered the living room, and froze in fear when he saw the reason for Hopper's screams.

Iggy was thrashing about in Hopper's grip, her jaws clamped down on his eyebrow, clawing at his face. Hopper was on his knees, trying in vain to pull her off of him. "IVAN! Fuck, man! Help me! She's trying to gouge my eye out!"

Ivan stepped forward, but hesitated. The blood dripping down Hopper's cheek...the color so vibrant; it made both the room seem brighter and him feel light headed. He had to force himself to take deep breaths before he started hyperventilating.

"GOD DAMMIT, IVAN! FUCKING HELP ME!"

He lurched towards Hopper and grabbed the iguana with both paws. She resisted his efforts at removal, since he was trying his best not to hurt Hopper. "She von't let go."

"Come on, man! You're a fucking Hercules! Pull this bitch off of me!"

"I do not vant to hurt you!"

"She's KILLING me, man! PULL THIS BITCH OFF OF--"

Iggy ripped some flesh from Hopper's eyebrow, and some of his blood splattered on Ivan's face. He fell to the floor, his grip on Iggy lost. He heard the iguana fall to the floor with a heavy thump, and for a moment feared he would be attacked next. After wiping the blood away from his face, he frantically searched the area for the suddenly murderous pet, and found her laying on her side, her lifeless eyes staring at the wall. She hadn't moved, but he still kept his distance.

She had played dead before.

He moved over to crouch beside Hopper. The bleeding had already stopped, and this worried Ivan--shouldn't Hopper still be bleeding from such a terrible wound? Iguanas had sharp, serrated teeth; being bitten by one was like being slashed with glass. Hopper was also staring off into the distance, eyes wide open. Was he in shock? "Hopper?"

"Get...some ice..."

Ice would help stem the blood flow in normal circumstances, but this... "All right, I vill." Ivan rose to his paws, moving towards the kitchen. He grabbed all the ice trays in the refrigerator and put as many as he could into a plastic sandwich bag, zipping it shut. "Ve need to put this on your wound," he said as he turned to face Hopper...

...who was no longer there. He had vanished.

"Hopper?" Where had he gone? He cret forward, an uneasy feeling building in his stomach. Was this an elaborate prank, perhaps inspired by that celebrity and his televised pranks on other celebrities? Hopper loved watching it. Maybe Ivan was being set up for one.

No. The fear and pain in Hopper's eyes when Iggy had her teeth in his flesh were real. The wound was real. The blood was far too real.

But where had he gone?

"Hopper?" Ivan called out into the empty room.

"Behind you."

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