Rising Mist(#1 Haze Series)Completed

16. The Alone Her

The darkness of the night had already made it difficult for her to see the surroundings of the place, they all rushed inside without any fore warning. She called out for her sister and husband, still no reply. She was the only one who couldn't see in the dark, the other three had no such limitation. Yet what was stopping them to reach to her, despite her many calls to them.

At one moment, the thought of them disappearing away terrified her. But she could feel their presence, each with distingued breathing sound, all slowly making its way to her ears.

"Is this place, the sacred one of the forest?" Her wispher echoing around as there was no one to answer her.

With the passage of time, the darkness of the night seems to be increasing, atleast that was what she was feeling. What little she could make out earlier with her pitiful night vision, now had become complete blank. The two stretched hand of her's had resumed their position after their tiring search for her companions. Bringing them closer to her chest, she rubbed her arms, wishing to ward off the coldness penetrating to her.

Now that she stopped searching, she finally smelled something else other than her fear. The frangrance of flowers that made her smile unconsciously. It was too light, yet there. Was this Datura? The famous flower or Ansia? These two were the only ones she read about that bloomed in the darkness of the night.

As her mind wandered around, exploring her surrounding with each of her senses, her tight body loosened and a low voice, "finally home", reached to her ears, bringing her back to the reality she was attempting on forgetting currently.

With misty surroundings and no one beside her, the winged girl just tried continuing her exploration through other senses than vision. The wisphered voices and a sudden sound of something or someone falling into the water made her hesitate, the fear gripping her yet again. Someone else was present here other than her family. The thought of someone harming her family as she stood meek was a vision of future she was never able to run from.

As terrifying pictures of future plagued her mind, the sound of footsteps in her direction eluded her notice. It was only when something latched onto her back that she actually saw a middle aged man standing too close to her comfort. She wasn't sure, but did the man possessed wings as well. She was trapped from front and back, each trying to bring her to their personal space.

If that wasn't enough, the winged man infront pulled her chain from her neck and crushed it to dust. The show of strength though impressing was not something she wanted to see, that was her last present from Uncle Jeev and the stranger didn't even hesitate to take other person's possession, destroying it to nothing. Her mother who had never allowed her to wear it in Astra, had personally put it on her neck for protection.

The hatred emitting from her back and front as her body trembled in coldness, made the ghost on her back tightening his hold onto her neck. The man infront didn't pay attention to it, instead stretched his hand and plucked the ghost away with such ease as if it wasn't some dead spirit, but a toy, too light to give it much importance.

She wanted to confront him for destroying her possession, but thankfully she still hadn't lost her rationality. If this winged man could throw a ghost breaking her neck with a flick of his finger, then what else would be impossible. Strangely, the man infront smiled at her as if he got back something lost, the wrinkles near his eyes bursting one after the other that now even his eyes shined brightly.

Her courage rose a little and she asked, "Why?" Pointing her finger to her neck and then to him. Even though she now knew that the winged man infront meant no harm to her, the words still resisted flowing out of her.

He shook his head to both sides in a no. He didn't want to talk about unpleasant topics, atleast not the first conversation with his great-great-granddaughter. The girl had finally grown up. So sweet and still innocent. He wanted embrace her, but the girl stepped behind at his approach.