#bearbert einstein

Steadying himself with outstretched arms, he rises shakily, his legs trembling beneath him like a fawn taking its first steps. He manages one step, then another, then a third. His limbs feel stiff and uncooperative, but he smirks at his small victory. In this moment, each step feels like a monumental achievement.

He lurches out of the embalming room, taking a sharp right down a dimly lit hallway. A set of lockers by an exit sign catches his eye. There must be some spare clothes there, he thinks. He shuffles to the closest locker, marked with the name "Bryson" on a piece of painter's tape. Inside, he finds an oversized black hoodie and gray sweatpants. He quickly changes, then checks the neighboring locker labeled "Dalton." A pair of Nike sneakers awaits him, a size too big but far better than the Converse he vaguely remembers owning. Sorry, Bryson and Dalton, he thinks with a faint smile as he slips the shoes on.

He pushes open the exit door next to the lockers and steps out, scanning his surroundings to get his bearings. To his left, the Amity Park Graveyard stretches out, a familiar place he used to cut through with his best friends on the way to their favorite hideout—the abandoned observatory. The structure’s dome peeks out from behind the treetops, barely visible in the distance.

Pulling his hood as far forward as it will go, he sets off toward the graveyard, vaulting over a crumbled section of the fence. His mind drifts to Sam, the one who had discovered the observatory and made it their secret spot. She always did her homework there, finding solace in its quiet, eerie atmosphere. A grin tries to form on his face, but the movement sends a sharp pain shooting through his jaw, forcing him to wince instead.

As he navigates through the graveyard, he takes in the rows of tombstones, some weathered and old, others freshly carved. This is where everyone in Amity Park ends up eventually. One grave, in particular, catches his eye—a freshly dug plot with a canopy overhead, waiting for its new occupant. Curiosity pulls him closer, and he squints at the newly engraved stone.

His heart stops as he reads the name etched into the marble.

𝔻𝕒𝕟𝕚𝕖𝕝 𝕁𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝔽𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕠𝕟

𝔽𝕖𝕓𝕣𝕦𝕒𝕣𝕪 𝟙𝟚𝕥𝕙 𝟚𝟘𝟘𝟟- 𝕆𝕔𝕥𝕠𝕓𝕖𝕣 𝟚𝟟𝕥𝕙 𝟚𝟘𝟚𝟜

𝔹𝕖𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕕 𝕊𝕠𝕟, 𝔹𝕣𝕠𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝔹𝕖𝕤𝕥 𝕗𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕟𝕕

Danny stumbles backward, falling to the ground. His breath quickens, eyes wide in shock as he reads the inscription over and over, hoping he’s made a mistake. His hands fly to his hair, tugging at his raven locks as pain shoots through his skull. This can’t be real, he thinks. This has to be a nightmare.

He clenches his eyes shut, desperate to wake up in his own bed, cuddling his drool-covered Bearbert Einstein. But when he opens them again, the cold marble is still there, looming in front of him. This is no dream. This is his reality.

Daniel James Fenton is dead.

Beartbert danced excitedly back and forth on his feet, clapping his hands. 

She smiled at him and crawled up to her bed and stared at him. He didn’t look much different than he usually did. He just had the tiniest green glow. He still looked like the stuffed animal she’d had all her life. 

For the next two weeks, Bearbert became her playmate. Danny didn’t want to play with her. All he wanted to do was play video games and make rocket ships, so Bearbert finally gave her some much needed company. 

She’d never really had any close friends before, but she imagined that’s what Bearbert was. She felt extra secure at night now knowing she had someone who’d protect her from all the monsters in the shadows. 

One morning she woke up and the bed next to her was empty. Looking around she couldn’t find Bearbert anywhere. He wasn’t wrapped in the bedsheets, he wasn’t on the floor, he wasn’t even on her desk drawing something for her. 

She walked downstairs and into the kitchen where she saw her mom making breakfast at the stove. 

“Mom? Have you seen Bearbert?” She asked groggily. 

Maddie flipped a pancake. “I found him when I came to wake you up today. I took him down to the lab to decontaminate him, he’s waiting for you at your seat at the table!”

Jazz’s heart dropped into her stomach and she walked up to the table to see him sitting on her placemat. He didn’t have an ectoplasmic glow anymore and he sat so horrifyingly still. Her lip wobbled but she didn’t let the tears fall. She just took a deep breath and pulled him to her chest. 

The next time he had come alive was when she was in middle school. She found out earlier in the day that Spike was in the hospital because he was hurting. It broke her heart and she wished she could’ve done something to help him. She wouldn’t get to see him for a couple weeks and she already missed him so much. 

She didn’t know how it happened. Bearbert had been sitting on one of her shelves for a couple years now. She didn’t sleep with him at night anymore, so there wasn’t any risk of ectoplasm spilling on him. 

But while she was crying, someone had tapped her arm and when she looked over Bearbert was standing there looking at her, his ectoplasmic glow so very faint. He waved at her. 

More tears filled her eyes and she grabbed onto him and pulled him into a hug. She doesn’t know how long she sat there crying, but when she pulled Bearbert away he was a regular, limp stuffed animal again. 

She doesn’t know how he did it. He must’ve absorbed enough ambient ectoplasm to come alive long enough to comfort her. 

She started sleeping with him at night again. 

This last time it had happened was when Jazz was coming home from school. She opened the door to her room and found an ecto-gun laying on the floor, ectoplasm leaking out of it. She wrinkled her nose at it. The seal must not have been tight enough on it. She’d have to tell her parents. 

It looked like there were little drops leading underneath her bed, which didn’t make sense if the gun was just leaking. She dropped to her knees and looked under the bed and her eyes widened. 

Sitting there looking at her was Bearbert. The last place she left him was on her bed near her pillow. He must’ve fallen off into the puddle of ectoplasm. He waved at her. 

She waved back at him and opened her arms for a hug. 

He ran out to her and jumped into her arms and she pulled him to her chest. After a moment, he pulled back and pointed at the door. 

A confused look crossed her face and she looked at it. 

He pointed at the door again and then pointed at a picture of her and Danny that was sitting on her night stand. Her eyes widened. 

“You want to meet Danny?”

Bearbert nodded. Jazz just stared at him. He’d never been interested in playing with Danny during those two weeks as a kid. She wonders what-

“Oh.” She whispered. “I get it.”

She stood up, holding Bearbert. Opening her door, she looked both ways before crossing the hall and knocking on Danny’s door. She heard a mumbled come in. 

She opened the door and walked in, closing it behind her.

“What do you want, Jazz? I’m trying to take a nap before a ghost decides to interrupt me.”

She held Bearbert out in front of her. “I had someone who wanted to meet you.”

“What are you talking about? That’s just-” His eyes widened when Bearbert waved at him. “What the hell? Jazz! Put that down!” An ectoblast appeared in Danny’s hand.

“Danny! No!” She pulled Bearbert back to her chest. “He’s not evil!”

“How do you know that?”

“Because this isn’t the first time this has happened! He used to play with me.”

“How-”

“Whenever he gets ectoplasm on him or soaks up enough ambient ectoplasm he comes to life.” She furrowed her brows. “Or, unlife, I guess. But he wanted to meet you.”

She set Bearbert on the bed and he waddled over to where Danny sat.

“Why though? I literally tore his stuffing out a month ago.” “I think he knows what happened.” Jazz said quietly.

Bearbert wrapped his arms around Danny and nodded. Danny looked stunned before placing a hand on Bearbert’s head.

“Why does he care?”

Jazz shrugged. “He likes comforting people I think.”

She watched as Danny leaned back against his headboard again, petting Bearbert’s hair. 

“I’m gonna go do homework for a little while. I can come pick him up later.”

She got up and went back across the hall to her room. She did homework for about an hour before deciding to wake Danny up in time for dinner.

When she peaked in his door again, Danny was laying on his side holding Bearbert in his arms. Bearbert looked at her and waved.