Week 2 Story: A Self-Discovery Journey
So maybe this whole going on a self-discovery trip without technology wasn't the best idea. The young girl was pretty sure this was the fifth time she had seen that exact tree, or maybe she hadn't seen that tree at all? Gosh, who knows which trees she has and hasn't seen, she just wants to go home! All those inspirational Instagram pages always talk about going on a trip into the wild to connect with your inner self or some kind of crap along those lines. She totally wouldn't have even considered it if it hadn't been a group trip. They were all supposed to be together, enjoying their time with each other without technology! But why is she now alone? Crack. The girl whipped around, "Who's out there? Izzy, is that you? Don't try and scare me!" She yelled into the dark night, hearing no response. Maybe I'm just hearing things. The girl shrugged it off and continued to trudge through the woods she found herself lost in for over an hour. As she continued to walk, the branches of the tree seemed to just get thicker and thicker, making progress became a mini-workout. How is this even self-discovery? I mean, we all came together so it's not like it's just me, myself, and I. It's basically camping but without our phones. Crack. Whipping around, the young girl saw a glimpse of some sort of fabric trailing through the trees. Now she knew it was Izzy just messing with her, the other girl was always wearing long flowy dresses, saying they complimented her long legs.
Feeling reassured, the girl began to chase after the trailing fabric, eventually falling behind due to the thick foliage. Damn it, it isn't even funny anymore! After fruitlessly trying to chase down her friend, finding her way into a clearing in the process, the girl then came up with a scheme. If I pretend like I fell and got hurt, then Izzy will surely stop messing around and come help me. Falling to the ground, the girl let out a cry of her friend's naming, pretending to pass out once hitting the ground. Rushing footsteps echoed throughout the clearing as Izzy sprinted to aid the girl. The girl smirked, feeling her friend frantically running her hands over her to ensure she was okay. Right as she decided to reveal that she was in fact okay, the girl heard a metallic shink from behind her, sending a shiver down her spine. I don't think that is Izzy! Slowing craning her head and opening her eyes, the youth saw a silhouette of a young woman in a Victorian-era nightgown, eerily looming over her while dangling a knife from her hand. As the woman moved to properly grip the knife, the young girl rolled away and onto her feet, sprinting into the woods, choosing a direction at random.
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After running for who knows how long, the girl finally slowed and came to a stop at a riverbank. The ghostly woman with the knife seemed to have been left long behind her. Hallucinations. That's what it was, I'm hungry, so I'm seeing things. Yeah, that's it! Maybe I should take a quick nap, it could be because of sleep deprivation too. Laying down on a bed of moss near the edge of the river, the young girl slowly drifted off into a light doze. 𝅘𝅥𝅮RinG arOUnd tHE rOsie, POckets fUll of poSIes𝅘𝅥𝅮 A horribly off-key tune echoed across the river, sliding over the girl's ears, slowly rising in volume. The youth sat up, stock-still, staring across the river, looking for the source of the voice. The singing suddenly cut out and a question rang across the water, "Do you have any chapstick?" What the heck? Rising to her feet, the girl could see a figure emerging from the tree line across from her. Fearing that the nightgown woman had returned, she prepared to run, but a small voice stopped her.
"I'm not here to hurt you! In fact, I have an offer for you," said a small child, obviously no older than 7, beckoning the youth to stay put. Reluctantly, the girl stayed, awaiting the child who began to cross the river, seemingly walking on top of the water.
"What's your offer?" the young girl inquired, still wary of the child's intention.
"Well," sing-songed the child, "if you have some chapstick I can borrow, I'll return you to your friends." Well, that seems like a decent offer, but what if they are trying to trick me. "And don't worry, there is no trick. My mother never allowed me to used chapstick, as she feared the chemicals that may have used to make them." Can they read my mind? The child had made their way across the river and now stood in front of the youth, who reluctantly pulled her chapstick from her pocket and handed it to the small child. Humming happily, the child grabbed the chapstick from her hands and told her to close her eyes. Might as well. Closing her eyes, the young girl waited for some signal from the child. What seemed like a few minutes had passed, yet she heard nothing from the child. Finally deciding to open her eyes, the young girl saw an entirely different scene in front of her. She was standing at the edge of the woods, the campsite in her sight!
"What took you so long? You said you were just going to take a leak, but you were gone for like ten minutes," Izzy yelled from the picnic table near their set up tents. No way it was only ten minutes, my watch showed that I had been wandering the woods for over three hours. Yet, when she looked down at her wrist, she saw that her watch showed only 12 minutes past the time she had left the campsite to relieve herself in the privacy of the woods. Her friends all began to wave her over, telling her they were about to begin telling stories. Hesitantly, the young girl made her way over to her friends, joining them at the picnic table.
"Apparently," her friend Quinn began," there are two spirits that haunt this forest, a young child and a woman in an old nightgown. They say that no one has ever . . ."
Author's Note:
I got slightly carried away, so my story ended up being around 1060 words. I really used a vague outline when writing my story, mostly focusing on the idea of being in the woods and encountering ghosts, one of which promises the ability to do something. After reading the Teton ghost story from the anthology, I decided I would try my hand at a short ghost story, much like the ones I read as a kid. While the second Teton ghost offered a man victory against his enemy in exchange for defeating the ghost in a wrestling match, I decided to go with a much sillier request: a request for chapstick. I also added the self-discovery part in there because a lot of people nowadays have praised the idea of leaving your phone behind and returning to the wild.
Bibliography:
The Indian Who Wrestled a Ghost. Myths and Legends of the Great Plains by Katharine Berry Judson (1913).
Hi Lanney! I love your rendition of this story — I thought the chapstick offer was a great addition! I think it's very easy to get carried away when you're in the process of writing, but you did a great job, it didn't read like it was 1060 at all. Keep up the great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Lanney, your use of modern elements in an old folktale was a cool addition! It makes sense that even though spirits come from ancient times, their techniques and methods would have to adapt to modern day to make sense in baiting out younger people. It felt like a very short read so I was surprised to see you hit 1060 words. Good job with the pacing!
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