The Witch Burning Chapter One

The gravel crunches softly under my worn rain boots as I walk along the path. Dark, misty shadows make it difficult to see my destination. I trudge on with only the sound of my footsteps reaching my ears. The tears that run down my face are silent and almost unnoticeable. Finally, I stumble over a beam of wood. It indicates that I only have five paces remaining until I reach my mothers fresh grave. Kneeling down I suddenly feel an overpowering presence; I move the next five paces on my hands and knees. Feeling the cold stone of my mothers headstone, I run my fingers along the engraved words, "I love you mommy". I lay the fresh flowers down and drape myself over the stone.

I hug it as if it is the loving bodice of my beloved mother. Almost as if she was here, I feel her. But she isn't, and I have to remember that she never will be again. My young arms can never embrace her again. I have to cherish the feeling of the last hug she gave me.

I lie in a shivering silence for a time, letting the wind blow my tangled hair. Around midnight I decide to begin my journey home. I get up slowly because even the thought of someone seeing me at her grave just days after her passing is unthinkable. As I stand, I see the unmistakable light of a flashlight. The moon now shines brightly enough for me to find a tree to hide behind. "Everyone still visiting must evacuate...", says the guard. The rest of his sentence may have been beneficial to hear but the wind muffles it so all I hear is the thunderous gusts. Leaving the grave yard, the guard disappears and I begin to peak out from the safety of my newly found hiding spot, the tree. I take one last look at the starry and now clearly, moonlit sky and that's when I see it.

The sudden urge to run overtakes me. It isn't an instinct talking to me as much as it is my mother telling me to take flight. The deafening roar of bomber planes fills my ears. The lights and the noise are just to much for my young mind to comprehend. I run. I run so suddenly that I forget all about the wooden beam. The toe of my rubber boot catches on a splintering piece of the wood and the ground seems to rush towards my face and give it an unwelcoming high five. Slowly, I push myself up and touch my hand to my nose. A soft trickle of blood warms my hand and I pull it away quickly. I take off running again this time in a search of a closer shelter. Luckily, I find an old, stone grave house and rush to the rusted door. With one kick it swings open and I scurry down the stairs. With a sudden boom the ground shakes and I am thrown off my feet onto the cold stone. Something hard falls on my head and then, just as a trickle of blood reaches my eye, everything goes black.

Eventually a small light forms and as it gets nearer a figure becomes visible. Then I realize something very strange. The figure belongs to my mother. Rushing toward her, I reach out to hug her. Her mouth doesn't move or open, but her graceful voice tells me that if I touch her I will be brought to her and never be able to live again. I want to stay with her, but I can't deny her wishes. I don't know how she makes me go, but eventually I turn and creep back into the blackness. I turn back to have one last look at my mother, but when I look her figure has faded. I am scared. Scared of the dark, the bombs, and the fact that I had just seen a ghost.

Some time later, light begins to fill my eyes and I begin to make out the shape of the cold stone grave house I fell into. On a nearby post that had fallen in the bombing, a flyer is attached.

It reads: " IMPORTANT NOTICE! All people that can see ghosts or spirits are now considered witches! All witches are to be burned or killed in any way a law maker sees fit. If a witch is found please report her immediately."

A chill runs down my spine as if a stream of ice water has been poured down the back of my ripped pajamas.