by C. N. Nevets, (c) 2010
We'd never done Christmas at her grandparents' cabin before. During the day, it had seemed charming and rustic. It had felt warm and cozy.
At night, it was unsettling for my city-boy nerves.
Ice-covered branches scratched against the cabin and clinked against one another. Birds or animals moaned, low and remorseful. The snow that fell seemed to hush everything but the sounds I didn't want.
Cozy felt confining. Rustic felt unprotected.
It's just the woods. It's just the woods. It's just the woods.
And then I saw the face at the window.
And the blood seeping under the door.
Please read the other stories that are part of the Advent Ghosts 2010 event, organized by Loren Eaton.
Oh! The last lines gave me a chill! Love this, Nevets. Does the blood form the shape of a butterfly? ;)
ReplyDeleteCozy can be confining and rustic unprotected (I liked that) but the sunlight makes everything OK come morning, if morning comes.
ReplyDeleteI love spooky Christmas stories. Good repeat on "it's just the woods" and I bet this prompt was right up your alley. Merry Christmas Nevets!
thats a bit creepy C.N. Have a fairy merry christmas!
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas, Everyone!
ReplyDelete@Michelle - hahaha :) Glad you liked it.
@Yvonne - Yeah, I love this prompt. Tomorrow I'll try to repost the story I did last year for the event, since I have several readers who were not with the blog then.
And the cozy/confining thing is taken from life. My wife likes cozy. I don't like small spaces or clutter. lol
@Summer - Yay! A bit creepy is what I was hoping for.
I had another one that was even creepier, but I couldn't get it down to 100 words. I may go ahead and finish it out and post it later this weekend anyway, just because it disturbs me so much I want to share that feeling with the world at this time of love and giving.
Chilling. I like your use of cozy and rustic too.
ReplyDeleteI like the noises that lead into the creepiness. I'm struck by the parallels between our two stories. Amused.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I love the idea of the blood creating the shape of a butterfly.
NONONONONO, IT'S NOT JUST THE WOODS!!!1!
ReplyDeleteNevets, did you ever see the movie Dark Water? This reminds me of it, the unsettling imagery, the sense of something otherworldly crouching just out of sight.
Be sure to post the other one you worked on, because I want to read it.
Faces at windows are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteCreepy indeed. I love how you took the charming day and twisted it into fearsom night. Isolated cabins are fearsome even without the blood seeping under the door. I loved those last two lines.
ReplyDeleteHave a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Nevets :)
........dhole
@Phil - Thanks! Chilling is always a doubly good thing for a creepy Christmas story to be.
ReplyDelete@Aidan - Yeah, apparently Christmas time strikes similar in our psyche. haha
@Loren - It's never just the woods, is it? I haven't seen Dark Water, but I think now I shall have to. And I will post the other story, too. It's a whole different sort of creepy.
@B - Faces at windows are probably my biggest source of fears. I have a couple allergies (certain molds and cut grass) which cause such an adrenaline dump that they create a sense of fear. Reflections in the windows... geez. Not good.
@Donna - Thanks! I'm glad you liked it! And if there's one thing I learned about in Alaska, it's the range of feelings one can have for isolated cabins.