A Place That No One Believed Was Real

“Can you smell the blood?”  She whispered is the pitch black room.
“No, not really, I have no idea what you’re talking about Oni.”
“Oh but you do--“
Interrupting she spat “Just shut up you stupid demon!”
Flipping her hair to reveal a yellow eye behind her black bangs “Just give into to it silly little girl.  There’s nothing to fear little girl……”  
The blinding darkness turned into blinding light as Oni voice screeched.
“Shut up!”  She screamed as loud as she could covering her ears trying to drown out the noise.
Her eyes snapped open from the nightmare.  Sweat trailed down her pale face.  The sent of the salty ocean filled the small room.  The sound of her own blood pumping through her veins pounded in her ears.
Breathing heavily she sighed “It was just a dream.”  The wind whistled loudly sending a chill down her spine.
Ever since the day little Elizabeth was born she was frail and weak.  She was constantly sick as a baby.  Over time she became skinny from not eating.  Thankfully she was able to have most of the medical care she needed being born into a fairly rich family, though at the time England didn’t have much advancement in medicine and stuff.
Her skin color was gastly white.  Upon her face were gray eyes, thin pink lips, thin eyebrows and a buttons.  Her blonde hair was carefully pulled up into a curly pony tail that danced at the top of her head.  She was very beautiful but with her good looks came a price.  She stayed in her house all the time away from the outside world.  Elizabeth had no friends just her family and then there was that voice Oni.  
Oni was her inner curse.  Oni loved the smell of blood and only came out when poor Elizabeth was around some was bleeding.  No matter how much she ran she was trapped by Oni.  Some times she saw Oni in the shadows.  She was lanky and also pale.   



Her long, curly, black bangs hung in her face like spider legs.  She would flash white teeth forcing Elizabeth breath out of her lungs and when she would look at her yellow eyes Elizabeth would feel a fear so deep you can’t even imagine.
It was one bright and sunny Fall day.   The leaves were rustling in the wind.  Elizabeth was just enjoying the warmth of the sun.
“Elizabeth can you please open the curtains.  It’s so bright out side and it’s so dark in here so be a dear would you.” called her mom from the kitchen.
“Mm ‘kay.” she smiled “You’re right.  It is kind of dark in here.” She opened the curtains slowly.  Light poured into the room “That’s better.”  Then she looked outside and saw two children playing in the leafs.  Then she remembered those days then smiled.
-FLASH BACK-
It was a bright and sunny day.  Young Elizabeth was standing at the door.
“Move out of the way slow poke!” yelled her eldest brother Harry.   He pushed her and ran out the door as fast as his little legs could take him.
“Hey wait for me!” she cried after him.
“I bet you can’t catch me Elizabeth!” he challenged.
She huffed “But you’re older so it isn’t fair.”
“Scaredy cat!   Scaredy cat!  Elizabeth’s a scaredy cat!” He taunted
“I-I’m not!”
He grinned “Okay then on the count of three we run all the way to that tree over there!”
“One, two, three GO!” and they both ran as fast as they could over to the tree that was about 100 meters away.  Harry was winning in tell he tripped and fell over a bump in the path.  The fall sent him skitting across the ground scrapping his knees and his hands
“You dumb brother!  Don’t go so fast!”  Elizabeth ran over to him.  “Be more carful.”  Looking at his wounds “It’s nothing to serious but you could have really hurt you’re self.”  



Then she smelt it.  She smelt the blood.  It made her sick.  She wanted to throw up.  After the short feeling nausea she felt faint.  After that she couldn’t remember anything but waking up next to a fire.  She watched her own house burn to the ground by fire that a 6 year old with black hair and pale skin had started, a fire that Oni had started.
-FLASH BACK ENDS-

This was when the memory wiped the smile right off her face.  She closed the curtains in attempt to forget the awful part of her childhood.  Then her head became foggy and throbbed.
“I think that I’m going to go out side.”
Her mom looked at her like she grew a second head “R-really?  You never go outside.  What’s with this a of a sudden?  Are you okay Elizabeth?”  She walked toward Elizabeth then felt her head.
“I’m fine and I’m going outside.”  Her hand grasped the door handle and turned it slowly.  I felt like one of those doors that shouldn’t be opened.  She heard the clunking of the gears.  At that she opened the door.  Elizabeth took her first step out into the open like testing freezing bath water.   She wanted to stop moving but her legs pushed her through the door.
She was about 100 meters from her house when the warm sun turned in to a paralyzing chill but she kept walking.
‘why am I so cold’ she thought.
Elizabeth whole body became numb by the time her house was out of sight.  Everything became unfamiliar.  The trees seemed to curl around her like it was trying to enclose her.  The leafs disappeared off the trees and off the ground.  Children’s laughter filled the air.  It echoed through the forest.  A knot formed in her stomach.  Her brain told her to stop moving her legs but it was like they were being controlled.  The mist that had kissed the ground turned into a thick fog.  The sun had disappeared completely behind haze.



Finally her legs stopped.  She thanked god but she had spoken to soon.  She heard foot steps. *thump* there was a pause *thump thump*
She closed her eyes then rubbed them trying to squish everything out of her head. *thump* In small jerky monitions Elizabeth turned her body around.  Damn whatever had compelled her to go outside.  She was lost.
Her eyes helplessly wandered around.  The fog was so thick she couldn’t see any thing but wet never ending gray.  There it was again.  The laughter.
“H-hello?  Who’s there?  She muffled out.  The giggles surrounded her.  She turned and ran.  The not so amusing laughter grew louder every step.  Elizabeth couldn’t take it any more the noise would make go deaf.  She fell to her knees and like a conductor of an orchestra the giggling stopped all at once.
A body became in sight.  It was limping drunkenly over to her.  It said “That’s good girl stay right there.”
‘What?  Is that….Oni?’ she thought.
“That’s what you get for not listening to me little girl Well I guess you’re just in that rebellious stage.”
“I’m not a little girl!  Go away you stupid illusion!”
Oni chortled “It’s not an illusion.  I’m very real.  Now you’ve offended me.  Maybe you should be punished” She slurred.
Oni raised her hand and was about to slap.  Elizabeth squeaked and put her arms in front of her face to block the blow.  Then nothing happened.  Elizabeth sat there crying and shacking for like 20 seconds. Her eyes flickered open.  Nothing, no fog, no mist, no Oni, no nothing.  Warmth filled the air and the sun shined.  She concluded that was the weirdest thing that had ever happened to her.  EVER.
Once again she heard foot steps strolling along the path.  They were different though.  They were lighter and more controlled then Oni’s hobbles




“Hey girl, are you okay?!”  the pace of the tapping feet sped up.  It was then she realized to position she was in.  All sprawled out on the ground and crying hysterically really makes people worry.  So, tears streaming down her face, ears ringing like heck, and in pain she stood up from the damp ground.  A little girl walked over to her and shot questions at her like it was just rushing out of her mouth like wind.
“Are you okay?  Are you lost?  Do you need help?  Who are you? Where do you live?  Do you need help?”
Elizabeth just kind of looked at the girl and said “Well I’m lost and….”
“Your Lost?!  That’s a funny name.”  She rambled on “Oh yah my names Emily.”  Emily grabbed her hand and ran “My house isn’t to far from here so you can come with me Lost!”
The little girl ran and ran all the way to her house.  When she was there Emily flung open the door and said “MOMMY I’M HOME! LOOK I FOUND A FRIEND!  Her name is Lost.”  
‘friend…’ Elizabeth thought ‘she really thinks I’m her friend?’
A women with the brown eyes and brown hair the same as Emily smiled “Really that’s great.  Hum, Lost, that’s a funny name.”
Elizabeth force a smile on her face “Well my name isn’t---”
“MOMMY!!!!  Can we keep Lost?” pleaded young Emily.
She just laughed “No Emily we can’t keep her.  Humans aren’t for keeping like dogs or cats.”
Staring off into space Emily said “Oh okay.”
Elizabeth stood there pondering if she should even try telling these weird people the truth about her name or run while she could “Um….”
“Hey, why don’t you stay for dinner I already started making it.”  Cheered Emily’s mother.
“I----”
“I insist!”
“Um okay.” She just gave in





Emily’s mom begun chopping vegetables “So where do you live?”
“I live not to far from this forest.  My house is right by the ocean.”  
‘Wait, did I just tell someone I barely met were I live.  At lest they don’t know my name.’  For some reason she trusted the half strangers.
“You mean the really big one.”
“Yah.”  Elizabeth answered
Emily’s mom was temporally distracted from what she was doing and she cut her finger with the knife.  “OW!”  The women yelped in pain and held her throbbing finger.
“OH MY GOSH!” Elizabeth cried then plugged her nose as fast as she could.  It was too late.  Oni already smelled it and laughed.  Elizabeth felt dizzy.  “No.” she whispered and forgot who she was.
“HAHAHAHA out finally out of that over protected body!  I thought I would never smell fresh blood again!”  Oni screech “What havoc should I cause to this village first!  After all I’ve been locked away for 7 years!”
Emily ran over to her mom in fear “Mommy what’s happening to Lost?”
She chocked out “I-I don’t know Emily but just don’t go near it.”
“I like the way you called me an it, naïve people.”  
“What happened to Lost?!  Give me my friend back!” Emily stated proudly.
“This Lost girl isn’t your friend.  She doesn’t have friends.  She only has me.”  Oni said flashing white teeth.
Emily bravely stated “I don’t care just give her back!”
Oni just rolled her eyes “I don’t understand you little girl.  Why would care so much about some one you met just met?”
“Maybe because she looked really like she needed a friend.  Hey Kind of like you!”  Emily ran up to Oni
“Fool What do you are think you’re doing?!”  Emily’s small arms rapped around Oni.



Oni screamed in pain.  She was being ripped apart from her helpless hostess.  The body’s separated.  Oni still was screaming in pain and flashing lights filled the room.  She evaporated into the air.  Elizabeth had never felt so free.  She wrapped her arms around the girl and smiled.  Maybe all along all Elizabeth needed was a friend.