AN: This starts between the season one episodes "Route 666" and "Nightmare."

O'Brien, Texas
Seventeen Years Previously

The stairs creaked. A small family of three sat around a tiny circular table, eating dinner. Hannah Lynn glanced behind her, then shook her head. It was an old house; there was bound to be some noises. Any time her husband was out late she got this way, nervous and paranoid. Daniel always laughed at Hannah's worries. She would swear that she heard strange things, that furniture would slightly move, windows would unlatch. This only happened when Daniel was gone, though. It was all in her head, he would say. Figments of stress and worry.

Hannah's seven year old son, Tyler, stood up suddenly. "I'm done, Mom, see?" he held up his suspiciously empty plate, and then proceeded to go watch television.

"Nice try, Ty. Empty your pockets," Hannah tried to hide a smile as Tyler, now looking guilty, pulled two handfuls of steamed broccoli out of his pocket. Tyler always tried to find a new way to hide his vegetables, which usually resulted in a lot of extra laundry for Hannah. She held out a hand, averting her eyes as Tyler pulled off his pajama pants and gave them to her.

"Mom, I can't eat food that was in my pocket!" Tyler grinned triumphantly, clearly thinking that he'd won this battle. Hannah, though, smiled sweetly at him.

"Don't worry baby, there's a ton more on the stove," Tyler shuffled into the kitchen, grumbling under his breath. He, with a sour look to his mother, scooped more broccoli onto his plate. Hannah grinned slightly. She looked over at her daughter, Tessa, who was quietly watching the affair, a lilting smile on her four year old face. Noticing her mother's stare, she began eating again, but she still smiled.

"I'll be back down in a minute, alright? Tyler, don't you dare try to hide that broccoli again!" Hannah called, already halfway up the dark staircase. Why the previous owners hadn't installed lights in the stairwell was beyond her; it was an extreme safety hazard. They'd only lived here six weeks and already she'd nearly broken a leg on the stairs.

She sucked in a breath as she reached the second landing. Why the hell was the laundry room on the third floor? Hannah stopped for a moment to catch her breath, leaning up against the wall. She heard the creaking noise again and automatically flinched. The third floor had always somewhat scared Hannah; there was something about it that made it seem dark and dingy. She rolled her eyes at her own silliness. Only children were afraid of the dark. Hannah started up the staircase again, being careful to not trip over her own feet.

The air seemed to grow colder the higher Hannah went. She shived involuntarily. "Get a grip, Hannah," she whispered, shaking her head. She reached the landing, pausing a moment before opening the door to the master bedroom. The laundry room was connected to it, yet another thing Hannah despised about the house. Sometimes, she wondered why she'd let Daniel talk her into this house in the first place. Hannah flinched when her feet came into contact with the ice cold floor. It definitely wasn't her imagination. Hannah frowned at the darkness of the room; she could have sworn she'd left a light on earlier.

"Damn it," she ran her fingers against the wall, fumbling for the lightswitch. She flicked it on. Nothing happened. Hannah turned it several times, hoping that the lights would come miraculously on. Finally, she sighed, resolving to do the laundry in the dark. Hannah was halfway across the room when she heard a faint sound behind her. Foolishly, she called, "Hello?" as if she expected a person to step out of the shadows.

"Damn horror movies." Hannah muttered. She continued into the laundry room, where she found that the lights weren't working either. There must be a wire loose somewhere, she figured. Hannah put Tyler's pants into the washing machine, not noticing the shimmering figure lurking behind her. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck raise as she stood there. Hannah knew in that instant that she wasn't alone.

"Honey, go back downstairs." Hannah turned around, expecting to see the wide-eyed, innocent face of one of her children behind her. Instead, she was met with a horrifying image: a woman, her head lopsided. Her neck was clearly broken. Dried blood coated her face, and fresh blood was pouring from her nose and eyes.

Hannah screamed, but it was quickly cut off as the figure flew forward, throwing Hannah against the wall. She heard a loud crack as she hit the ground. The woman advanced on her, her blood splattering Hannah as she leaned over her.

"You will pay," the woman whispered. When she opened her mouth, blood poured from the hole, splashing against Hannah. Hannah let out a choking sob, the only thing on her mind was her two children downstairs. This- this monster could easily hurt them.

"Please, please! What do you want?" Hannah sobbed, holding her hands over her face in a desperate attempt to save herself. The woman only smiled, showing blood-stained teeth. She brandished a single piece of rope. Hannah tried to scream as the woman lunged at her, pulling her to her feet. She secured Hannah to the exposed beams of the bedroom ceiling, smiling as she did so. Blood splattered the ground in thick drops.

The last thing Hannah saw before the woman dropped her was her childrens faces. "My babies," she sobbed, moments before her breaths were cut off with a choke. The woman had dropped Hannah, the makeshift noose holding tight. Hannah's eyes bulged, and then she moved no more.

Tyler had heard a loud thump upstairs, and decided to abandon his broccoli to investigate. "Stay here, Tessie," he ordered, and then began climbing the stairs with caution. All was quiet until he reached the second floor landing, where he heard what sounded like his mother's voice. Tyler quickened his pace, moving as fast as his small legs would carry him.

By the time he reached the third floor, all was quiet again. Tyler pushed open the door to his parent's bedroom and screamed. His mother was hanging by her neck from the ceiling. Blood splattered her t-shirt and jeans, and she wasn't moving. After tearing his eyes away from his mother's limp body, he noticed a woman standing in the bathroom doorway. She was also coated in blood, but she was clothed in a black tattered nightgown, and her hair hung in greasy strands. Tyler watched as she seemed to vanish into the air.

"Mommy? Mommy!" He yelled, staring helplessly at his mother. Tyler heard thumps on the stairway, which meant his little sister was on the way up. He hastily turned around and fled the room, meeting Tessa halfway down the stairs.

"Where's Mommy?" She asked, her tiny eyebrows furrowing. Tyler said nothing, but the tears streaming down his face were enough for Tessa not to ask any more questions.

The two children sat in their living room for hours, too shell-shocked to move. Neither went back upstairs to see their mother's gruesome remains. Daniel Lynn arrived home, and after pleas from Tyler he went upstairs to indulge in what he thought to be another child nightmare. Instead, he found his wife hanging by the rafters.