The Disturbance

Aster

     The girl of age 12 was walking through the fields behind her house. The pale grass glided past her hips, tall and soft. Her hand brushed the fluffy tips of the plants with a mindless smile on her lips. She saw her large brown dog bounding towards her. She grinned, patting her thighs and calling Olive's name. Her dog, Olive, sped into a sprint and slowed down just enough to jump on Penelope and put mud on her just washed dress. She giggled then continued walking when she noticed a huge flock of birds burst out of the woods. She sped up and started to investigate. She was about to enter the woods when she heard her mother yell for her, "Aster!"

Lunch

After hearing her mother call her name, she ran back to the house, Olive running ahead. When the two reached the old Victorian house, Aster quickly wiped her feet, then slid through the glass doors and shut them behind her, keeping Olive out. She noticed the recently slaughtered turkey on the counter, they would have some form of turkey today, good, better than the soup they had been living off of since the war broke out. Aster then helped her mother and cook the fresh turkey. Her mother gasped, "Aster! Your dress!" Her mother scolded, her arms crossed against her chest, her eyes asked for an explanation. Aster fiddled with her muddy dress and told her about Olives jumping. Her mother's sharp hazel eyes softened and she scratched Olives head. "I guess it'll be okay if you help me with the turkey."

The Forest

After wolfing down her sandwich, Aster quickly said she was going for a walk. After getting reluctantly cleared by her mother, she sped outside. While heading toward the area where the birds had been spooked with Olive, she noticed other small animals, and small purple flowers clinging to her dress. Eventually there were so many flowers on the cloth, it appeared to blend into the fabric. She paid no mind, to the dismay of her mother, she would scrub it out when she got back. She finally reached the edge of the woods and hesitantly reached her flower stained foot into the darker area. Even Olive seemed scared of the ominous area. She took a breath, and shoved herself into the area.

The Pit

After wandering around for about a half of an hour, she stumbled across a huge hole next to a pond whose water flowed into the hole, never seeming to run out. More interested by the pond, she stepped around the pit towards the small body of water and gingerly poked her toe into the water, expecting an ice cold feeling. What Aster actually felt was warm water, washing her flower and grass stained feet. Interesting. Olive then stuck her feet into the warm water to play. She then went over to the hole to investigate. She walked into the steep climb down, gently placing her feet, scared the loose rocks would fall under her weight. While Olive was scooting down the rocks, she noticed another pool of water. Then she noticed a figure duck into it.

The Figure

Aster then quickened her pace, getting down to the body of water in a shorter time, adrenaline and her morbid curiosity fueling her. She stuck her toe into the water cautiously. Also pleasantly warm. She scanned the area for the figure she saw, the darkness straining her eyes. A head slowly rose from the water. Olive whimpered and scampered up and out of the cave. She leaned her head closer trying to make out their facial features. The head waded closer. Aster could make out large yellow eyes, and dark wet hair. The rest of her figure was underwater. A pleasant bubbling came from the creatures general area. Aster smiled, the fish like humanoid reminding her of the mermaid song her mother would sing to her. Thinking it was safe, Aster called out to see who she was. "Scarada" was her name. Scarada then rose out of the water showing her menacing, unnatural form.

Scarada

Aster shrunk in terror, her eyes as big as saucers. She could now see what Scarada really looked like. Under her bright yellow eyes was a crooked smile, her sharp yellow teeth glinting from between her thin lips, her neck lead to long bony, sharp, shoulders. Her stick thin arms held hands, if you could call them that, with long gnarled black claws. Her ribs poke through her light blue skin like knives. Every detail in her hips and bone structure was visible. Then Aster noticed her huge, black, eel-like tail. It whipped the water, but the flowers weren't washed out by the water splashed from her. Aster's eyes trailed backup to Scarada's face. Aster gripped her flower stained dress as a baby would to their mother. Then, Scarada lunged.

Penelope

Aster felt her claws hit her. Then she felt nothing. Then she saw darkness. She then saw the cave. Purple flowers delicately floated out of the entrance where she had been killed, planting themselves in nearby trees and soil. More stuck to her dress, and when she looked down she noticed the blood surrounding her. Some of the lighter flowers were turning pink and light red. She still couldn't feel anything except the overwhelming ringing in her ears. She again looked up to the opening of the pit and saw Olive, desperately barking for anyone to come and help her. The flowers are covering Aster, almost all of her dress in purple and pink flowers, the flowers now consuming her skin. Her vision is fading slowly, but she sees her mother come and kneel next to her, her face disfigured with pain and distraught. At this point, she is becoming the flowers. They start blooming on her face and joints, her mother seems to be screaming ripping the flowers away. A flower floats off of her daughter, and positions itself in the mother's hair. Aster can't see at all any more, but she can just barely hear her mother sobbing and she names the flowers, her speech muffled by tears. "Aster"