Survive the Night (ON HOLD)

Five | Shadow

Ailbhe stared at the moon.

The magical, floating feeling that she always experienced upon stepping into Devil's Wood had trickled through her body once again, and she was now laying in oblivion, the dampness of the grass seeping through her clothes not bothering her in the slightest.
The 'Hidden Hill', as she liked to call it, was nestled deep into the woods, shrouded by a bulk of trees, their trunks grown so closely together, that it was hard for even Ailbhe's tiny frame to fit through them. She had stumbled upon it her first night ever venturing into the trees, and at once, noticed that, for some unknown reason, on that very spot, she felt most at ease. It was a mound of earth, raised off the ground about seven foot, but horizontal at the very top, making it look as though something had fallen and flattened it straight across. When Ailbhe first lay on it, she noticed that the trees circled perfectly around the lump of earth, creating a perfect ring of branches above her head. It felt to her as if she were looking through a giant telescope, straight into the night sky. Through this wreath of bare branches, she had her own patch of sky to study. Some nights it was glittered in stars, splattered like white paint against a dark canvas, but other nights- like tonight- the moon was positioned perfectly within the circle.
It beamed down in slivers onto her bare face, bathing her in moonlight.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, relishing in the crisp air that filled her lungs. All the earlier panic was gone, and she was now completely empty of all her negative emotions. She felt as though she had left her physical body on earth, her conscience blasted up into space. She was now on the moon, and on the moon, there was no badness.
She couldn't remember why she had thought coming here would be so dangerous. She couldn't even remember why she got a thrill before stepping into the trees. How could something as relaxing as this stir such feelings within a person?
Of course, there was the fact that many people had gotten lost in the vast, dense population of trees over the years and she could become another number for that list. Yes, she had to walk across a thin log that sat dangerously high over a gushing stream filled with jagged rocks to make her way to the spot. But none of that mattered anymore. Out here, on her hidden hill, she was safe.
No one, or no thing could get her out here.
The fire couldn't follow her here.
There was no danger in her special place.

As soon as Ailbhe finished the thought, a strange sensation filled her body.
The bad emotions didn't return, but an uncomfortable niggling chewed at her stomach. Sitting up, she snapped her attention to the surrounding trees, trying to figure out why the calming, weightless feeling was suddenly snatched from her. There were no sounds apart from the clicking of branches in the wind and her own slow, deep breaths. Putting her right hand onto the damp grass, she pushed herself into a crouching position. Her eyes widened as she recognised the feeling that had advanced all over her body.
She was being watched.
Hairs prickled on the back of her neck and goosebumps rose on her arms beneath the thin material of her jacket. Even though she couldn't see them, she could still feel them- a reminder that her body just knew something wasn't right.
Her sixth sense had come into play. A gut feeling. And although Ailbhe couldn't explain how, she just knew that she was no longer alone. 

Before the fire, Ailbhe had never been frightened of anything. She had watched horror movies in the dark before she slept. She had gone on walks in graveyards at night for fun. She did cliché creepy things- fun creepy things. But she had never experienced true fear. Real life horror.
Losing a loved one. Being in a terrible accident. Told she had a life threatening illness.
She had thought that life was a fun, easy rollercoaster. She thought that nothing bad would ever happen to her.
But that night, everything had changed.
Her naivety had been literally burned away.
Her parents had disowned her, and she had learned of a secret so shocking, she still didn't quite believe it.
She didn't realise she was zoned out, staring at her hands as if they were monsters, until a distance twig snapped.
The fear she had learned on that night- the fear of a very real danger- began to resurface in her body.
Once again, she was out of control in a situation that could be life or death. Whoever was watching her, could be dangerous. Very dangerous if they were comfortable enough to stroll through Devil's Wood at such an hour.
She nearly laughed at the irony before she realised what was actually happening.
Someone was lurking in the trees, peeping from behind a trunk, waiting to creep towards her.
Her heart began to thunder in her chest as she stood up. She had learned the night of the fire that she had a flight response instead of fight, and now, the same response was pulling her away from the hiding stranger.
Wrapping herself in a hug, Ailbhe quickly turned on her heel and began to descend the hill.
Of course, on all the days it could have happened, the universe picked a day she was trying to flee.
Her foot caught on a pointed stone sticking out of the grass and a cry escaped her mouth. Time seemed to slow as she rolled down the hill. She could feel every thump on her legs, every scrape on her hands, and she could even feel the dead leaves sliding through her dark hair as she landed in a heap at the bottom of the pile of earth.
As soon as she stopped moving, time began to speed up again and pain filled her body. She lay on her stomach, all four limbs stretched out like a starfish- her face smushed into the soggy earth.
"Fuck," she spat a leaf out of her mouth, cringing as the taste of dirt rolled over her tongue.
The crunching of twigs started again, closer this time.
Ailbhe rolled over and sat up with a groan, noticing a throbbing in her wrist.
She looked around with a shiver. "Wh-Who's there?"
A flash of black darted across her vision and Ailbhe fell onto her back with fright. The snapping twigs sounded closer than ever, and the noise of leaves being waded through made it clear that whoever was watching her, had finally approached.

Meow

Ailbhe lifted herself up onto an elbow, eyebrows raised in surprise. Suddenly, a laugh- something she hadn't heard in a long, long time- fell from her lips. 
A black cat stood at the end of her body, licking his paws clean. Upon noticing Ailbhe's attention, he dropped his paw and tilted his head in an inquisitive stance.
"You scared the shit out of me," she laughed again before standing up and wiping the dirt and leaves from her dark clothing. "How did you get the whole way out here?"
There was no collar around the cat's neck, and so, she assumed that he simply didn't have an owner.
"I'm going to call you Shadow," she said, and at this, Shadow seemed to raise an eyebrow. His piercing green eyes narrowed at Ailbhe's statement as if he wondered how she even dared give him a name.
Shadow turned and began to meander forward. He stopped and craned his head back to Ailbhe, like he was telling her to follow.
"You want me to follow you into the woods? You sure you don't want to come back with me?"
I've really lost it, she thought. I'm talking to an animal in the middle of Devil's Wood.
Grateful that her newfound friend wasn't some creepy serial killer, Ailbhe decided to follow the cat, relieved to have some sort of company with her. She knew her way well around this part of the woods, so she would turn back if she started venturing into unfamiliar territory.
I'll just go a few feet in. Then Shadow and I can part ways.
Shadow began to trot forward, turning back every few seconds to make sure Ailbhe was following.
This is weird. It's like he actually wants me to follow.
Ailbhe didn't have time to react as a shriek sounded a few feet away from her.
The sound of foot falls thundered loudly- or as loudly as they could on wet soil- and then, the frame of a large silhouette came into view. Before Ailbhe could move out of the way, it crashed into her, sending her and it tumbling to the saturated ground beneath.
The silhouette's hand came down onto Ailbhe's neck, squeezing her breath from her.
She was right- she had been watched by some creep. And now this creep was going to kill her.
The festering fear began to bubble again, this time spreading throughout her entire body. There was no flight mode this time, because she couldn't break free.
Tears seeped out of her eyes and fell to wetness already on the ground, mixing so that a raindrop could not be told from a cry.