Contest Entries

When The Leaves Turn Red

This is my entry for the Weekly Wattpad Contest #55  Contests

It is believed that when the leaves turn red, the devil is at play, facilitating black magic within the soul of one woman. 

The villagers had begun to whisper and gossip amongst themselves. Fear was again instilled into all of the young women of the village, but rumours stirred against me. It was my turn to run. 

My mother had heard of the news and on the day of reckoning, she woke me before the sun could rise, but it was too late. Guards had been watching our home and were close behind, as I ran through the murky forest towards another village that I had only heard of. My hope for respite diminished second by second as the forest ahead became increasingly thicker and darker. 

The villagers, equipped with torches, knives and axes, stormed through the forest behind me, shouting "witch, witch, kill the witch!", whilst I ran barefoot in my white nightgown. Their torches glowed against the trees, illuminating each one as they passed. I had been running for so long that I began to slow; my legs couldn't take me any further. The sound of my breath almost drowned the sound of the villager's screams behind me. 

In an instant, objects began falling and clattering around me. The hunters were moving closer; they were throwing knives. Suddenly, I felt a hard punch to my shoulder. The force jolted my body forward and searing pain travelled through my arm and back. I fell to the ground, screaming out in pain. A warm, wet sensation encroached my back. Blood. 

I was covered in dirt and blood, and tears stained my face. I turned to face the crowd of hunters. Their faces were illuminated eerily by their torches and their weapons glistened under the moonlight.

"STOP!"

The leader of the village stepped forward from amongst the crowd. He looked down at me with disgust. 

"Annabel Anne-croft. You have been found guilty of witchcraft." He announced with conviction, yet still catching his breath. The villagers cheered and jousted their torches into the air. 

I sat forward, dug my hands into the soil and closed my eyes. "Dark-some night and shining moon, hearken to the witch's rune..." I began. 

He continued. "You will undergo the witch trials and - what the? What is this?!" I could hear the panic in his voice. I heard their torches extinguish in unison. 

I continued as the villagers began to scream, "by all the power of the land and sea, be obedient unto me."

I opened my eyes to witness the vines and roots wrapping around their legs, whilst they desperately tried to escape being anchored by nature's chains. The twigs and leaves cracked and creaked as they pulled the hunters deep into the ground, until their screams muffled and the land flattened. All that was left was a twitching hand that lay partially buried amongst the vines.