Palace in the Woods

2

After strolling the woods,  I' m now dumbstruckly gaping with mouth hanging open at what appears to be an abandoned castle in the middle of the forest.

I have been walking for 2 hours now,  from the  waiting shed where the jeepney has dropped me off.

Damn, I think I' ve been pranked.

I' m just thankful that the sun is shining today or else this would have been a totally creepier experience.

The palace, like it is literally a freakin'  palace, is wrapped in dark twigs. Its aura feels really creepy but something else entirely different can also be felt about the place. I just can' t pinpoint what it is.

Like all other palaces, this one also has huge gates. I was standing before it, still contemplating whether I should enter it or shout "HELLO" and gain attention from anyone listening. I decided on the latter.

"Heelll--... ?"

I was not able to finish my sentence because the huge rusty gates opened by themselves.

Uhh, creepy much?

But I can' t be choosy right now since I' m the one who needs this badly.

I heaved a breath and entered the palace.

Beneath the high walls of the gates, everything is withered and brown and black. Rocks where covered with moss and swings were wrapped in withered vines. The fountain looked lifeless and unused. A faint harmony of sounds can be heard from where i stood.

The view, the overall feel,  was so surreal yet very enchanting. Something about this place makes me want to run away yet stay here forever at the same time as well.

That' s when the sounds grew louder- wolves howling on the left, snakes hissing behind me, a woman' s cry piercing through my soul. I wanted to run but I swallowed my fear and proceeded in entering the palace.

I need this job. I feel that if I let the opportunity pass, I won' t find another job that would hire me. I won' t have money, food, shelter. I' m gonna suffer the 4 months summer waiting ahead of me.

Shaking, I bravely rung the doorbell. Finally, something normal in a house! Not that the presence of the palace alone in the community can be considered normal, anyway.

A man in what I presume to ba a buttler' s uniform ipened the huge door. He looked in his 30s and was very handsome with his attire. He also looked abnormally pale...like a vampire. My heart raced.

"You are Mia Dimagiba, yes? This way please."

He knows me? O.O

And then everything went black.