The Stories That Once Were!

"Ugh!"

Her body tumbled out onto the streets, and soon she was up on her feet, running through the dark streets, panting heavily, as she ran for her life.

"Get back here!!"

She heard a loud voice ring in her ears, making her run even faster, fear gripping her heart, as the rain fell upon her face, her heels clicking against the wet paved road. She was never going to come back, and neither was she going to. If only her curiosity hadn't gotten the best of her...she’d be fine...

Hours earlier...

A soft sound of heels echoed against the walls of a long corridor, as a figure walked alone in the darkness, carrying only a candlelit lantern above her head. With a long ball gown, full of dark green spirals, and black silk on, and a hood covering her head, her light purple eyes moved in alert, while her light pale hand trembled, making the fire on the candle flicker, as she held it firmly. She wasn't afraid, just a bit weary. It wasn't the first time she's been to this place, and it won't certainly be the last. Another set of footsteps soon followed after her, making her walk faster, only to hear them approach her faster, and now she was on the run, down the hall, and through many rooms; the candlelight was soon blown out, as if by a sudden wind.

The footsteps soon stopped, and so did she. With the candle light out, she held the lantern down to her side, after running into a room, and hiding behind the open door. The footsteps she heard, ran passed the door, but she knew better than to run out or even move a muscle. Outside the door, stood a dark figure, eyes golden yellow, with the body of a shadow, and the silhouette of a mysterious creature.

It waited to see if the woman would make her move, listening intently, trying to catch the sounds of her racing heart. 5 minutes pass, 10 minutes pass, another couple minutes; and soon, the figure fled down the hall, footsteps being heard once again. The woman could now breathe, knowing that the creature had gone, and thanked the Gods that, whatever it was, wasn’t around anymore. Looking about the room now, she noticed that she had made it to a library.

The shelves were spaced, the books all dusted, chairs either toppled over, or sitting against the table; and torches sat on the walls, unlit. It took all of her might and courage to pull herself away from the spot of which she hid in, before running down a long aisle of books, looking the certain one she’d always come to read during this time. The cloak she wore, flew behind her like a cape, as she ran speedily to the fiction novels, and picked up the book she had found before.

Sitting in the corner of the sitting room, using her bright eyes to keep up a good light, she continued to read the tale, and while engrossed in it so much; she didn’t realize the creature had come back. It smelled her, an intruder, the outsider, the girl who came every week, without a sound, nor permission. It’s shadowy body crawled across the floor, as it approached her silently. With her eyes glued to the page, she didn’t see the creature, nor hear it coming. It wasn’t until a few seconds later, she felt a cold shiver run through her, and felt something behind her. The shadow had become her shadow, her eyes glowed slightly, widening in fear, before she turned around to see a monster of some kind grinning widely at her.

A loud shriek escaped her lips, as she scampered across the floor, the book held tightly in her grasp, until she got up, and ran for her life. Running out of the room, she ran down the hallways, keeping herself from shrieking in fear, as the shadow chased after her. She went one, and then another, around one corner, and around some more; before finding a room that had only one thing in it; a mirror. Frowning slightly, she walked over to it in haste, before decided to climb behind it, which she did; just in time for the creature to come barging in, nearly knocking the doors off of its hinges.

She held her breath, and slowed the steady beating of her heart; while a hand covered her mouth. She closed her eyes, as the creature began slithering around the room, trying to find out where she was located; which, to her surprise, it couldn’t find her. The creature was vulnerable to mirrors, and even though it saw the mirror, it couldn’t see her, since she was behind it. Growling in annoyance, it soon left, footsteps now clear that it was running away. Staying still for the moment, she wasn’t sure now what it was that she had seen, or what that creature was, but for it to make such footsteps sound so humanly; it caused her to become a bit confused.

Was it a monster?

A shadow?

Or a human?