My 10 day writing challenge

Day 7

"To loose yourself is to stray from the path"

The day had finally came. A day trip to the long lost abandoned village of Wharram Percy. The village was a 19th century crop village, it had been home to over fifty residence who all vanished over night.

My friend and I were taking the trip to take photos for our photography project. My camera was already packed in my camera bag, along with every lens I'd need, spare batteries, lens hoods, everything really.

My friend had the same but she also had a GoPro that she could strap to her chest or hat. She planned to take as many photos as possible.

We packed everything into the back of her car before climbing into the front two seats. Nancy decided to drive up to the deserted village which meant I would be driving back. As the passenger I had no control over the music, as Nancy liked to say 'Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole' damn Supernatural for that reference, thankfully she liked good music.

The whole drive up to the village we spent singing along to everything we knew the words to. We turned onto a country road slowing down for a better look at the scenery. Half a mile down the country road we came to a old crumbling church partially hidden by the forest, dirt tracks wandered off towards the woods, most lead up to the decaying church.

Nancy killed the engine before climbing out of the car, I followed suite and my way to the boot of the car. We both collected our camera bag and headed in the direction of the old church. I stopped a few feet away to free my camera of the old bag I had yet to replace.

I was amazed at the reaming walls still intact, only the roof appeared to be missing. Most of the steeple was still there save for the front facing wall. Peering through the windows I was surprised to see the ground still upturned, rocks pilled against the walls, it looked as if archaeologists were still working here.

Moving on from the church we looked over what was left of the graveyard, a few headstones stood tall, all washed smooth from years of weathering. There were two sealed tombs barely big enough to fit a coffin still standing both at opposite ends of the graveyard.

I looked round, pointing my camera towards the woods, a small girl stood along the foot path. She was wearing what looked to be a white long sleeved shirt with a maroon tunic over the top. Her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail tied with a ribbon.

I snapped a shot of the scene assuming she was some kid cosplaying as a medieval girl playing among the ruins of a church or castle. Lowering my camera after the click I looked around that area wondering where the girl had disappeared to.

Nancy startled me as she jumped in front of me, her hood pulled up and over her face. I laughed it off as I looked at the last photo I took, the girl was missing from the photo too. Nancy peered over my shoulder, her hair falling loose from her hoodie. She looked back up and suggested we head into the woods and explore the dirt paths. In her words there could be more of the village just waiting to be discovered.

With that we headed off in hopes of finding something. The forest wasn't too vast but seems to grow more dense the further we went. The further we followed the trial the more the woods appeared to decrease, rounding the large shrubbery my mouth fell open metaphorically, Nancy's actually did fall open.