Canon: Pennywise x Witch!Reader
Warning: Symbiotic Relationship, No Outward Affection, Pet Names, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters mention/ vibe, Mentions of Killing, Shapeshifting
Summary: After awakening from Its long hibernation, Pennywise decided to change Its formâone that would make approaching Its food, especially children, far easier. Learning from the events of 27 years ago, the day It was defeated by the Losers, Pennywise resolved that this time It would choose a guise that was friendly, invitingâone that felt truly human. And the person It set Its sights on was the young owner of The Luverry Bakery: a girl with a youthful, beautiful appearance and a seemingly boundless kindness.
Note: This fanfic is set after It: Chapter Two.
THE LUVERRY DAILY Masterlist
Having existed for thousands of years, Pennywise believed Itself clever enough to deceive and devour humansâespecially children, those who were always most terrified once It had set its sights on them. Fear was the finest seasoning for meat, after all, and Pennywiseâs greatest pleasure lay in gorging Itself on the flesh of children steeped in sheer terror and despair.
It knew very well that with such a taste, It had to become something capable of luring the foolish children of Derryâor rather, someoneâso It could drag them down into the sewers and butcher them at its leisure. That was why It chose Bob Gray as Its form in this world. The children of this town loved Pennywise the Dancing Clown, so It became Pennywise.
As time passed, awakening once every 27 years, It gradually began to realize that children no longer adored this Pennywise persona as they once had. There was the boy in the yellow raincoat who tried to retrieve his paper boat from the storm drain two cycles ago, and the girl with the birthmark on her cheek in the cycle before that. The common thread was that they recognized Its terror far too early. It didnât want that. It wanted to toy with Its prey longer, to savor a meal seasoned with care and patience.
27 years after being âdefeated a second timeâ by the Losersâ Club, Pennywise finally awakened from a painful hibernation, scarred by the torture inflicted upon It by the humans It had always despised. After abducting the first child as a waking feast, Pennywise chewed thoughtfully, contemplating a change of formâsomething more friendly to Its foodâbeginning with observing what children these days liked.
That was when It set Its sights on the young owner of a bakery across from Derry High School.
Pretty, friendly, gentleâalways smiling at those pesky kids. She even kept a bunch of black bunnies behind the bakery, which the children seemed to adore.
Standing in an alley far from âThe Luverry Bakeryâ, Pennywise watched her laugh and play with the children. It had been observing her from afar for nearly a week, and tonight was the night It would carry out its plan to change forms.
Unfortunately, she was not the pretty, friendly and gentle girl It thought.
That night, as she stood in the kitchen baking with her back turned, just as Pennywise opened Its mouth wide toward her head, she suddenly spun around and splashed a glass of something utterly vile straight down Its throat.
Pennywise had never expected to be discovered. It had entered the house silently, using Its overwhelming power. It staggered backward, coughing violently.
âWhat the hell is this?!â It snarled, Its yellow eyes glowing with ferocity in the darkness.
But just as It lifted Its head, ready to pin her down and devour her in rage, It suddenly saw the image of figures dressed in bizarre garments, wielding bows and swords.
The sight was painfully familiarâso familiar that it confused It. It had seen them before, back when It had transformed into a massive reindeer to hunt prey, long, long ago. Before It ever took on the form of Pennywise. Before the town of Derry was built.
âHave I slept too longâŚ?â It wondered. Were the images of being defeated by the Losers its inevitable future? Or was the cage of Derry the reality awaiting it centuries later?
After all, past, present, and future were merely concepts to It.
âGood evening, Mr. Gallon.â Her sweet voice sounded right beside It. As It turned warily, just as It had expected, she stood there calmly. âOr should I call you Mr. Deadlights?â
Pennywise glared at her, shock and fury blazing in Its eyes. Its sharp teeth were still stained with flesh and fresh blood from tonightâs meal.
âWho are you? Where is this place?â
It felt no fear from her. More than thatâIt knew she was not human.
Yet to a supreme entity like It, her identity did not matter. It could devour her in an instant without the need for fear as seasoning. The only reason It hesitated was her abilityâthe power to create illusions, like that dark-skinned soldier who had struck It several cycles ago.
âIâll get straight to the point.â She bent down to Its eye level. âIâve lived in Derry for 26 years now. I want to continue living here. Please donât eat me.â
Never before had anyone faced It so franklyâsmiling, even, while making such a gentle request. But what was It? It was an Eater of Worlds. Whoever she was, she would die beneath Its claws.
âBold words, Bunny. That confidence of yoursâdoes it come from being able to see my memories?â It straightened, looking down at the girl who seemed so small and easily torn apart. âWhy trap me in an illusion you made? Trying to scare Olâ Pennywise? Oooh⌠youâre terribly mistaken, brat. What could someone without fear possibly be afraid of?â
Saliva dripped from Its mouth, soaking Its cracked white chin.
âI will EAT you. Iâll devour you and take your body. Become a sacrifice to Pennywise.â
Just as It lunged, she raised a small vial and smiled brightly.
Black fragments struck the glass with a weight so immense it felt as if Its chest might explode like molten lava. Though they were tiny shards, they were fragments of the meteor that had brought It to this world.
Pennywise growled and retreated. She did not move, nor did she intend to attack. It could feel that clearly.
âI can show you what makes a fearless being panic,â She said softly, gazing at the black fragments. âI call it surprise. You were wondering what was in that glass I gave you earlier, werenât you? What if I advised you to be more careful about what you put into your body? What do you think it was?â
Pennywise thought rapidly. Even thinking with Its knees, It understood. Its gloved hands moved to Its stomachâIt had swallowed that liquid earlier. What if she had added even a tiny amount of meteor fragments?
There were no signs of danger. It couldnât feel that black substance inside Its body at all. Which meant⌠she was bluffing.
âYouâYOU DARE threaten me!â Pennywiseâs body twisted, iron claws tearing through its white gloves. Its eyes burned with murderous light.
âYOU DARE THREATEN ME, THE GOD OF THIS WORLD! IâLL KILL YOU!â
She remained still, the vial in hand, knowing It could do nothing against a fragment of the substance that had imprisoned It in Derry for so long.
âYou canât,â She said calmly. âYou canât kill me.â
âIâm not threatening you,â She continued, finally slipping the vial into her pocket. Pennywise released a quiet breath of relief. âI want to make a deal. I only want to live peacefully in Derry. I donât eat humansâwhich includes childrenâso I wonât compete for your food. Derry remains your territory. Think of me as⌠a symbiotic entity. That way, we both get what we want.â
Pennywise scowled. âWhatâs a symbiotic entity?â
âIt means we cooperate.â
âWe?â It snarled. âThere is no we. There is only MEâPennywise the Dancing Clown!â
She tried again. âThen how about this? Iâll teach you the easiest way to hunt good prey. In return, you leave me alone whenever you awaken every 27 years.â
Pennywise laughed. âWhat makes you think Iâd listen to you?â
She smiled. âThen why do you think Iâd offer advice at all?â
âHehehe⌠because you want to live,â It declared smugly, though It still sensed no fear from her. âIf you werenât carrying that thing, Iâd have eaten you long ago.â
âWhy do you want to eat me?â She asked, puzzledâthen answered herself. âAh⌠You want to take my form.â
She sighed, and Pennywise felt a strange helplessness radiating from her.
âDo you know the difference between you and Bob Gray?â She asked. âEven though youâre both Pennywise.â
âDonât spout nonsense,â It growled. âIâm not Bob Gray.â
âBob Gray had admirers,â She said calmly. âYou donât.â
It suddenly understood why the children who once adored Bob Gray never approached Itâeven after It became Pennywise.
So? As long as It could hunt and eat fear-soaked children, that was enough.
âThen what?â Pennywise sneered. âWhether I listen or not, Iâll still eat them. Iâve lived in this town longer than youâve existed.â
She looked surprised. âYou only wake once every 27 years. Do you realize how much the world shifts while you sleep? Children arenât the same anymore. And with your current⌠style, they might not even notice you at all.â
Pennywise glanced down suspiciously at the clown outfit that had accompanied It through countless long cycles. It was the form It favored mostâand also the most convenient guise for approaching children. True, not many kids came near anymore, but every cycle It still feasted well before returning to hibernation. So what was the problem? As long as It was full, that was all that mattered.
âIf you donât believe me,â She said gently, âgo hunt one.â
âI already did,â It snapped. âI ate the boy. Canât you smell the blood? Three kids in one week. One wandered into my sewer. One snuck into my house. The last was the boy who bought cakes from you todayâBilly. Ehehehe... you even gave him cookies.â
She stared at It in disbelief.
âThree children in a week?â She said sympathetically. âWitches catch more than enough children during Sabbaths.â
For the first time, Pennywise doubted Itself.
It finally began to question its own existence. Witch or not, she could waitâfirst, It needed to worry about Its stomach. It was true: the number of children it had caught had dropped significantly. If It remembered correctly, during the first week of previous cycles, It had always driven dozens of parents to plaster Derry with missing posters.
It glanced at the girl standing before It. She looked unnervingly calm, as if she were chatting with a friend. That only made It want to devour her out of spiteâyet at the same time, It found Itself more curious, more intrigued by her. Still, food came first. What had she just said again? That witches always caught more than enough children for each... festival?
Pennywiseâs eyes lit up, but what It said aloud was, âYou eat kids too?â
Her smile faded slightly. âI donât eat humans. Iâm different from other witches.â
She continued softly, âIf you eat me and take my form, youâll only succeed for a short time. A year later, youâll sleep again. 27 years after that, no one will remember the kind owner of Luverry Bakeryâjust like Bob Gray or Pennywise. What the childrenâespecially the Losers' Clubâwould find instead are reports about a creature living in the sewers of Derry.â
âYou are a divine being from the cosmos,â She whispered. âYou donât eat children because they taste good. You eat them because fear is richest in the young. What you truly enjoy is the hunt.â
Pennywise stared at her in silence.Â
For the first time in Its long, endless existence, It felt as though Its mind had been flung open like a broken door. She was right. Beyond devouring children carefully marinated in fear, what It enjoyed most was the hunt Itselfâand somehow, in this cycle, the flesh of the three children It had taken during Its first week awake no longer tasted as good as it once had.
NOT enough. Their fear had NOT satisfied It.
So even if It succeeded in stealing her formâor anyone elseâsâIt would never taste that exquisite flesh again?
Pennywise refused to accept that.
It wanted to bring terror to the children of this town. It wanted Derry to drown in despair and loss during each of Its twenty-seven-year cycles. Only then could It truly feastâonly then could It be full.
âThink about it,â She smiled. âDonât you want to taste that exquisite fear again?â
And thus began a new cycle.
Sitting inside a bakery stall with the lights turned off was a novel experience. Pennywise had hunted in bars beforeâhumans always dimmed the lights in places like thatâbut sitting in a gloomy bakery like this was a first.
Furry, round little black rabbits had appeared out of nowhere, carpeting the floor. They crowded around Pennywiseâs feet as if standing guard on her behalf. On impulse, It grabbed one of the bunnies to take a closer lookâpurely out of curiosity.
The soft, pitch-black fur brushed against Its white gloves. Even through the fabric, It could feel the tiny creatureâs breathing, its heartbeatâthere was fear, too.
âSnffâŚâ It lifted the rabbit to Its nose and sniffed. A familiar, richly seasoned scent gradually flooded Its senses.
âPlease⌠help meâŚâ
It heard the rabbitâs voiceâyet it also wasnât the rabbitâs voice. After all, how could a rabbit possibly speak?
When she stepped out of the kitchen, what greeted her was the sight of It gnawing on one rabbit, while clutching the ears of two others in Its hands.
Its glowing yellow eyes flashed. It didnât care what she thoughtâfirst, It would finish chewing this rabbit. Why did they taste so much like human flesh?!
âIt seems youâve found some comfort here,â she said with a soft laugh. âThough itâs a bit late, I hope you enjoy your meal.â
Pennywise squinted as It continued eating, watching her bring out a pile of witchcraft tools and lay them across the counter. The pastel-pink, frilly aesthetic of the bakery clashed absurdly with her occult instruments.
Back to the real question. After one rabbit, then two, Pennywise finally voiced what had been bothering It:
âSo you donât eat humansâbut you turn humans into rabbits and eat the rabbits instead?â
âNo,â She answered immediately. âIâm a vegetarian.â
A vegetarian? As inâno meat. Ever?
It stared at her from head to toe with open suspicion. By Its (entirely reasonable) understanding of the world, witches who didnât eat humans were already rare enough. Vegetarian witches were practically mythical. And considering that discovering she was a witch had already been a shock, Pennywise had assumed all witches were gloomy, twisted, and unpleasant.
âThis was a human,â Pennywise said, holding up half a rabbit leg. âOr used to be.â
She didnât deny it. âYes.â
Driven by curiosity, It asked, âWhy did you turn her into a rabbit?â
âBecause she almost made me shut down my bakery.â
âOh⌠ohohoâŚâ The bells around Its neck suddenly rang through the darkened shop. Though It hadnât moved an inch, she could feel Its presence everywhere within The Luverry.
âForgot to ask,â It said lightly. âAbout our deal. You said youâd help me hunt meat as good as the old days. I agreed. But what about you? This symbiosis you keep talking aboutâwhat do you get out of relying on me, when you can do everything yourself?â
She sat down on a chair behind the counter. When her smiling eyes met Its, Pennywise almost believed the person before It was an easy meal. Yet just as the urge to kill flared, her gaze turned icyâdespite the gentle smile never leaving her lips.
That was when It realized: she, too, was a primal predator.
âI want to live and work in Derry,â She explained softly.
âFor a very, very long time, Iâve wanted a place where I wouldnât have to rack my brain every time I had to send a stalker, a harasser, a molesterâor someone who broke into my home with vile intentionsâback to the Great Witch.â
She poured a cup of tea and slid it toward It, gesturing for It to drink while eating.
âWhen I found Derry and began to study it, I noticed how your presence had altered the ecosystem here. The people of Derry are⌠indifferent. They donât care if a child is beaten to death right outside my bakery. And I found that fascinating. I thought this place would be perfect for blending into human society. After all, I canât live in places where Iâm always the prime suspect whenever someone dies.â
Outwardly, Pennywise seemed intriguedâbut internally, It had already assessed her territory. Not all the rabbits were human, It realized. And no matter how sweet and warm her public persona was, she couldnât conceal the scent of blood staining her path.
âYouâve killed many people.â In Its mindâs eye, Pennywise saw a chaotic crowd at the edge of a forest cliffâchildren bound and locked inside wooden cages, forced to watch as witches in black dresses slaughtered their parents.
It didnât see herâbut It knew she was the cause of it all.
It spoke her true name, lips curling into a delighted grin.
âYouâre the witch who developed the formula that lets witches survive fire. Youâre also the one who established the tradition of eating human flesh during witch festivals.â
Drool trickled down Its chin. Now, It wasnât merely intriguedâit was enthralled.Â
At first, It had thought she wanted to share food resources. But Pennywise never shared. Derry belonged to It. Everything within the town fell under Its dominionâincluding her.
A strange, intoxicating joy surged through It. These unfamiliar emotions whispered that It didnât need to kill her to steal her form. She was fascinating. She could become a loyal servantâone who would spend 27Â years preparing the way for Its return from hibernation.
It wanted to possess her.
âYou turn humans into rabbits so they can understand the pain of becoming petsâplaythings for others,â Pennywise continued, gleefully peeling back the layers of her past. âYou make them suffer illness, reproduction, and ultimately a swift death. You donât eat humans because you despise them. You believe they arenât worthy of being eatenânot worthy pawns. They have no value to you.â
âHahahaha⌠even though you live among them?â It tilted Its head, grinning. âYou donât love those tiny, pitiful little bunnies?â
She merely smiled and said calmly, âI donât grow feelings for pawnsânor for humans.â
The joy swelling inside Pennywise, they grew and grew. At lastâIt had found a kindred spirit.
âWhat is this?â Pennywise held up a fork between two fingers, examining it. âDo humans use this to comb their hair?â
She snatched the pink fork from Its hand. âNo. If you want to comb your hair, youâll need to turn into a human first.â
It frowned in irritation. âI have to become human? But this form is much scarier. I like being a clown.â
âThat depends on your goal,â She replied, arranging her magic tools on the table.
âIf you keep that form, you wonât be able to approach children. Theyâll mock youâmaybe even curse at youâjust for being a clown.â
The memory of the Losers resurfaced. Pennywise shook Its oversized head, bells jingling. Wasnât it obvious? 27 years ago, the reason It had gone into hibernation half-dead was because those Losers had insulted It to death.
âSo all I have to do is become human.â It shot her a warning glanceâas if to say that if this plan failed, she would be the first to die. And It meant it. If this sacrifice proved pointless, It would gladly send her back to whatever Great Witch she worshipped.
When Pennywiseâs human form appeared, shock and disbelief flickered across her composed face. It was beyond her expectations. She had never imagined that a man-eating creature lurking in sewers could sculpt such a flawless human body.
Wellânot completely flawless.
She stood frozen for a few seconds before finally speaking.
âIâd prepared tools to adjust your face in human form,â She admitted. âBut it seems unnecessary.â
She praised honestly, âEven if you paint clown makeup on now, childrenâespecially girlsâwill swarm you like bees to honey.â
âI can really do that?â It asked eagerly. âIâm used to being Pennywise, not human.â
She nodded. âWhen necessary.â
She beamed. âLike volunteering for the upcoming event at my bakery. Thereâll be cotton candy, popcorn, balloons, andââ
âExactly.â She leaned forward, palms on the table. âThatâs why our plan to make you adored begins now.â
Pennywise was thrilled. For the first time in Its life, It was learning a new way to approach preyâan entirely different kind of hunt.
So what would the first lesson be?
Turning a child into a rabbit, letting it live out the rabbitâs brief lifespan, then transforming it backâstockpiling fear of death?
Or abducting a child, torturing it physically and mentally, then releasing them so It can hunt themâturning her garden into a predatorâs hunting ground?
Her voice echoed Its ear. âYou need to take a bath first.âÂ
She laughed. âYou smell like a wet rat. Children donât like the smell of wet rats.â
Pennywise didnât want to bathe. But It couldnât refuse her.
After allâeverything was for the sake of eating well.