Second Heartbeat

Something Wicked This Way Comes

A popular story on Quizilla that I'd like to post in case any of my old readers are here :3 my username on QZ was dreamer1024, and then mangosherbert01.

Options are: Zack, Axel, Roxas, Vanitas, Ven, and Noctis. No, Kadaj isn't an option. It's nothing personal but the entire series is already written!

It's AU, all characters are in their 20s, and there are some dark matters to this story...

♥ Alexia

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The most essential thing that needs to be understood about Dover Hills is the fog. Every night, especially in the winter, the small town is draped in a thick layer of inescapable fog that cloaks its surroundings and protects all adversaries lurking in the shadows. The forest on the edge of the village is the most unsettling, covered in fog even during the warmest of afternoons. Ghost stories and tales of monsters roaming in the night are told by all, and believed by all. Even the most skeptic of people cannot deny that the town has been visited by the supernatural, its mark left in many ways.

Only those with a death wish leave their homes at night. Even the most rebellious of boys refuse to step outside, fearful of the creatures that wait in the darkness. Though Dover Hills is a beautifully sleepy town over a century old, it cannot be denied that something is amiss. And, whether or not anyone was willing to admit it, the whispers of the night were building to a dull roar.

This is why, as a young woman roamed the streets alone one October night, people peered from their windows and murmured a prayer as they bade goodbye to the girl; she would certainly never be seen again. She shrugs further into her dilapidated coat as she enters the forest at the edge of the town, half of her body drowning in dense fog. The only sound that can be heard is the whistling of the wind through the tall trees surrounding her. She cannot see her feet through the white fog as she walks, but she's able to stay on the path without trouble. It was dangerous work, but as the youngest daughter she was expected to fetch wood for the dying fire currently crackling in her home.

Bone-chilling laughter suddenly echoes throughout the woods, and the girl comes to a stop with a loud gulp. Slowly, she turns around as muffled footsteps can be heard behind her. She's met with nothing but darkness and the shadows of tree branches. The last thing she sees is a flash of red behind her before something attaches to her neck. She tries to scream, but she's lifeless within seconds.

A sad fate for a foolish girl.

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31 October 1802 The Virginia Gazette Fifth Woman in Three Days Found Completely Drained of Blood Authorities in Dover Hills were startled by the discovery of a young woman perished in the forest. There was no blood left in her body, and no visible wounds. It is being advised that all citizens, especially women, should stay indoors for the time being and not answer the door at night. Any information—

"Blech," you groan, shoving the morning paper away from you on your dining table.

Five murders. Five young girls that would never marry, fall in love, come home again... it was much too depressing to read so early in the morning, especially since all but one was younger than your 20 years.

"What's wrong?" your older brother asks, peering over his novel to glance over at you from the other side of the table.

"Oh... nothing. Another girl was killed last night," you inform him.

He shakes his head, sighing as he takes a bite of his porridge.

"I wish we knew who was committing these acts. I don't want to even step outside anymore."