Nyctophilia

Chapter 1

Early 19th Century

Nyctophilia
noun
a love or preference for night, darkness

The mousey looking woman believed that nothing could keep them apart. Little did she know, death itself was capable of doing such a thing.

Evelyn had seen it all; the noose around his neck, the life drained from those beautiful, clear hues. It had shattered her heart into pieces, like millions of stars that sprinkled across the night skies. She knew of his depression, due to the other face he bared, and she attempted constantly to soothe Edward and let him know she loved him dearly. But she supposed that the harmful words and insults of the townspeople had finally gotten to the poor soul.

She kept locked away from the rest of the world, put her food intake on hold, and sobbed before every broken slumber. Evelyn wanted nothing more than to have the darkness consume her whole at this point. And although she had expected to be thin and bony a year later, this wasn't the case. Miraculously, she looked the exact same. Wavy, blonde tresses, a slender, porcelain frame. No one would even be able to tell she had been starving herself, but why? It all seemed too peculiar.

And then it hit her.

Evelyn searched through various albums of her deceased, adoptive parents, coming across a crumpled note written in exquisite cursive. She read it carefully, analyzing every word before secrets became uncovered to her.

According to the letter, her adoptive mother was an incredible sorceress, a highly respected one at that. She adopted Evelyn at a young age, and enchanted, which meant death and it's afterlife weren't in the question anymore. She'd never see Edward again, hear his soothing, elegant voice, or encounter his demon.

That's when Evelyn knew, the waiting game had started.

-

Halloween, 1952

Elsa was far too kind to take her into her family of freaks.

Evelyn was aware that she didn't quite catch the rising star's attention at first, but once she had explained her and Edward's romance, it was almost as if a switch went off. From then on, Evelyn finally had a place to call home, after spending years drifting through the streets of Jupiter, Flordia.

Halloween happened to be one of Evelyn's favourite holidays. She enjoyed seeing all the young children dress up in their scariest costumes and go door to door for candy. She had once dreamt of having children; the idea of being a mother figure to someone warmed her heart. The freak show was decorated beautifully, a delicate sight for the eyes. The troupe had carved pumpkins and made all sorts of ghoulish decorations to celebrate, and knowing that Evelyn would be spending her most beloved holiday with the people she cared about made her cherry red lips curl into a smile.

The immortal woman trailed near the main tent, dolled up in a white tank top and a black poodle skirt. Her attention was stolen when she overheard some serious conversation going on. Intrigued, Evelyn quietly peered inside.

"Hello." she grinned brightly, but didn't receive the same jubilance in return, which confused her.

"Well, this is awkward." Legless Suzy piped up, staring at Evelyn along with all the other freaks.

"Is my timin' bad?" Her southern accent was strong as she fiddled with fingers absentmindedly. She saw the bearded lady, Ethel Darling, tip her head in sorrow before replying.

"Evelyn, do you know what happens when someone performs on Halloween?"

The question was simple enough, but sadly, the woman was unable to answer with a nod.