The Haunting

As the frozen winter sun chases the mist and the snow follows the quiet stream, I pad down the forest path to the mansion ruins where It waits in hiding for me...

The mist is freezing, colder than the snow with the clouds pressing in. The mansions walls shiver. 'Just an illusion' I say unconvincingly. Echoes surround me gaining volume 'Its nothing...' I whisper shakily '...just the wind......?' I see It, a ghost-pale figure, coming, always closer...

It advances, chanting loudly, breaking The Silences. I sprint for cover, the forest. The last option but my only choice. With the trees reaching for me, seeking to strangle or incapacitate. I reach the stream, now bubbling ferociously and covering any sounds otherwise detectable. Flitting between the trees, I abandon the path, now to open for comfort.I pause, looking for, observing the signs of passage other than mine. Nothing. Wait, there It is tracking me further back, down the path.I go a bit further out of sight, hiding between some rocks and wait...

...Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out...

Silence......