Ethereah

Chapter Two: Part Two

"I am not sleeping in that thing," Tonia said, peering through the doorway and pointing at the corner of the cottage's one bedroom.

"Me either!" piped Kerri, racing Tonia to one of the bunk beds. Aiden was already fluffing his pillow on another bed and Parker said nothing, taking the bottom bunk beneath Aiden.

Meredith reached the doorway and looked around the bedroom. Cozy could be one word to describe it: two sets of bunk beds were pressed close to the inner wall, barely half a foot between them. And rigged in the opposite corner was an actual hanging sleeping hammock, strung up with thick cords to dense metal bracers fastened to the wood-paneled walls. Sighing, Meredith slung her knapsack onto the hammock. . "At least I don't have to worry about anyone falling on me."

"That would be uncomfortable," Aiden offered.

"Quite," Meredith deadpanned.

A low hum of excited energy threaded its way between them as they did even the most mundane of things, like brushing teeth and fluffing pillows. There was constant chatter and banter bouncing among them, the excitement of being off on their own peaking as the crescent moon in its endless dark sky. But eventually – slowly, even – each drifted to sleep, one by one, finally leaving Meredith in total silence while she stared at the ceiling. One of her feet pressed against the wall, setting the hammock to rock every so often. She drifted in and out of sleep, flashes from her day playing in her mind: Aunt Lily leaning against the dresser in her own room, the muted TV warped with static, hazy waves of heat rising from the New York City blacktop, walking across the parking lot of the diner, carrying trays laden with dishes through the doors of the kitchen, washing her hands in the bathroom.

There was a flicker across her eyelids as Meredith looked up at her reflection in the mirror. She pushed back through the diner's bathroom door—and stumbled ...

I'd only closed my eyes for a second, and I knew that I had barely been claimed by sleep – if at all. But I couldn't be sure whether what I was seeing was a dream, or some kind of twisted version of reality, because as much as I rubbed my eyes I couldn't see the oak paneled walls of the cottage bedroom anymore.

As far as I could tell I was alone, surrounded by thick forest, navy-tinted in the deepness of night. The moon was almost full, and it cast a milky, translucent glow towards the ground so that I could only see where I was walking. The grass was cool beneath my feet and I could feel a power, an energy, coming from the very ground I was standing on. It was a comfortable feeling, surrounded by the cool night and the earth's raw power. I felt at once cloaked and free, the jumping inspiration that I had the ability to do anything fluttered strongly within my stomach.

Inhaling a heady floral scent, I continued, following the illuminated path before me. Approaching a small fruit tree in full bloom, I reached up to caress a soft, delicate petal. But the flower didn't feel right at all – I suddenly realized: the forest was completely silent. I heard no noises from the creatures of the night, no rushing brooks or streams – the echoing void of sound pounded in my ears.

I felt rather than heard the trees whispering all around me, their cold breath making every hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Suddenly the energy did not feel comforting at all – it was terrifying. I wrapped my arms around myself, regretting venturing off on my own. My shoulder blades pinched together as I straightened. I had the distinct, ugly feeling I was being watched. It was as though I'd been placed into a horror movie — and I hated horror movies.

A sudden gust of air at my back made me gasp and I spun around so quickly I almost lost my footing. The darkness of the forest was the only thing that met my gaze. My body began to react in fear: my heartbeat sped up, thudding in my chest, and I could feel the beginnings of a cold sweat on my palms.