Assassin's Doubt

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Hayden nodded with a smile. He walked out, following Alaster, but staying slow enough to stick by Thomas's side. "When I'm ready, I'll let you know." He said with another nod. He was glad he had Thomas... happy he had someone he could trust and lean on. He'd never really had that before... "Alaster seems pretty ecstatic about breakfast." He chuckled.
 
"Can't blame the little guy," Thomas says with a grin, "But maybe we'd better get him some actual dog food."

One breakfast and a shopping trip later, the boys are on their way to the carnival, walking Alaster down the street. The bright lights and colorful canopies pop up over the horizon, and organ music floats out from beneath the lit up carnival sign with a clown mascot.

"There it is!" Thomas squeals. "Man, I haven't been to the carnival in years! You excited?"
 
Hayden was feeling a lot better now, a bright smile on his face. Now he was wearing a grey t-shirt and black shorts. He chuckled as Thomas squealed. "Yeah I'm excited! This looks like it's gonna be a lot of fun." He chuckled, still smiling.
 
"Great! You want to do games, rides, or food first?" Thomas asks as he buys two entry tickets and a roll of tokens to use.

Alaster is already tugging at his leash, tail windmilling behind him as he sniffs and licks at everything he can get close to.
 
Hayden looked around with wide eyes. "Uhm... maybe rides, then food, then games?" He said curiously. He bent over, gently petting Alaster. "Excited aren't ya." He chuckled and stood back up, looking to Thomas. "Or just whatever you want to do." He said with a happy smile.
 
Thomas grins ear to ear and ruffles Hayden's hair. "Nah, your plan is perfect." He takes a nearby map of the carnival and looks it over. "Okay, so for rides, we've got a carousel, a mirror maze, a bouncy house with a slide, a roller coaster, and a few other ones. Which one sounds the best?"
 
"A mirror maze? Is that literally a maze made of mirrors?" Hayden asked curiously. He stuck close to Thomas, feeling a little out of place in the crowd, but as he spoke to his friend, that feeling disappeared completely. "What kind of roller coaster is it?" He was purely curious of everything.
 
"It sure is. They're super fun to get lost in," Thomas says. "And the roller coaster is one that has a loop, five hills, and a drop. Want to try that or the maze first?"

Alaster stays close beside the boys, but he can't help licking up cheese curds, popcorn pieces, and anything else that's fallen on the ground.
 
Hayden thought about it for a moment. "Let's do the maze first." He grinned. He chuckled as he watched Alaster munching on anything he could find. Looking around for a second, he looked to Thomas. "Which way is what?" He smiled.
 
Thomas giggles and pulls Hayden's hand into his. "Come on. The maze is this way." After a few minutes of walking, the boys arrive at a tall maze of glass. Alaster is told to wait outside while Thomas buys their way in with two tokens. "Ready?" he asks Hayden as the mirrors shimmer before them. "The only rule is you can't run."
 
Hayden happily followed Thomas, holding onto his hand. When they reached the maze, he stopped, his eyes scanning over the structure curiously. "Wow.." he smiled and looked at Thomas. "This is going to be fun." He chuckled.
 
"I think you should take the left tunnel," the carnival worker says with a wink. "It's a lot more fun."

Alaster stiffens suddenly and growls at the man, but Thomas gently reigns him back in. "Easy, Alaster. Calm down. Sorry, mister. He's had one too many popcorn kernels off the ground," he apologizes.

The carnie smiles and waves him off. "Of course. Now, you two have fun!" he adds, pulling open the curtain entrance to the maze.
 
Hayden took quick note of Alaster's reaction. He smiled apologetically at the worker and nodded, letting Thomas take the lead. He stuck close to Thomas.
 
Almost the instant the pair is inside, Thomas banks a hard right - the opposite direction as he'd been told. "Did that carnie look familiar?" he whispers. "Alaster didn't like him at all. And he rarely growls at people he doesn't like."
 
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"No, not really... but his tone sounded slightly familiar. Like a deja vu kinda thing... But it'll be ok. Alaster is a smart dog, he gave us a warning. Now we just have to be cautious." He said calmly. Hayden didn't seem too bothered by Alaster's reaction to the man.
 
At seeing how calm Hayden is, Thomas pulls in a breath and nods. "Okay. Let's find the nearest emergency exit, get Alaster, and get out of here. Something's off about this hall of mirrors." He steps cautiously forward, hand brushing against the glass as fifty reflections of himself stare back. "The only question is, which way do we go?"
 
Hayden's eyes scanned their surroundings carefully, searching for any sign of movement that wasn't the two of them. "Sounds like a good plan... but I don't know which way is out." He said as he looked to Thomas. He bit his lip in thought, looking around again. "Just go forwards for now.. eventually we'll find our way out I'm sure." He said calmly, taking a step forwards before looking back to Thomas.
 
Thomas nods and cautiously inches forward, his hands constantly out in front of him. He stiffens as he catches sight of a few shadows flitting behind the mirrors. "Hayden. Someone else is in here," he whispers. He backs up and takes Hayden's hand as his eyes narrow. "I think I know what's going on. Remember that guy who tried to gas us earlier?"
 
Hayden felt Thomas's hand grab his and he tightens holds on. He'd seen the shadows too and was listening carefully. "Yes, but there's too many exits to try that I think." He whispered, gently pulling Thomas forwards. He knew that no matter what they had planned, if the two of them stopped, they'd be in a whole world of trouble. He stuck his hand in his pocket, gripping the handle of his knife. He never went without it. "Thomas, we can't stop moving." He leaned in close to whisper this. "No matter what, we cannot stop. Trust me." He knew this was the best place to trap them if they stopped. By moving, it would be difficult to trap them in, as there would be a constantly changing exit and entrance from their current position. It was a maze after all.
 
"Good point," Thomas whispers back. He starts walking again and stays as far from the mirrors as possible, making sure to keep an alert eye on the movements around him. He swallows and leans closer to Hayden again as he moves. "They're starting to go in behind us. We might be heading for a dead end," he murmurs. "Should we try backtracking and going another way?"
 
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