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Jun. 28th, 2009 11:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stinglikeabeeDon't go out there, the old woman said. She pointed at the stretch of land surrounded by gnarled trees and permanently cast in shadow. You don't want what's waiting there.
I shook off her grip. Woman, I'll go where I bloody well want--
--wait, what was that? I turned around, saw naught but heard the retreating footsteps. The old woman's warning rang in my ears.
I hesitated. Then shakily took my first step. And the next. I found that the ground was damp and uneven; one lapse in attention and I'd be helplessly rooted in mud and left to the mercies of whatever resided in these parts. My gaze flickered from the hazards that lurked in my path to my surroundings, aware of the unseen creatures whose presence made the hairs on the back of my neck stand.
A rustle to my right, and my heart leapt up my throat. I swallowed, and slowly turned my head. Under the faint glow of the moon I saw a hazy sight.
Beside the abandoned ruins of what was once a home, was that a rabbit?
Fear rushed out of me, and I clucked. Stupid to have believed that old woman, I thought. Making sure to tread lightly, I ventured closer. The rabbit (a healthy looking specimen of white with brown spots) remained uninterested at my approach, and serenely continued chewing grass. I thought wonderingly of the years since I enjoyed time with a tame creature, and knelt down to greet it hello. The creature wriggled towards me.
I raised a hand, intending to graze the top of the rabbit's ears when it struck without warning. I saw a pair of blood-red eyes seconds before feeling the sharp, then dull ache of fangs digging into my neck. Surprised, I fell backwards with a muffled thump. My life was quickly ebbing away, and I was unable to even blink. And so I could only watch as the last image I had of this world was the victorious hell-rabbit before me howling into the night sky.
I shook off her grip. Woman, I'll go where I bloody well want--
--wait, what was that? I turned around, saw naught but heard the retreating footsteps. The old woman's warning rang in my ears.
I hesitated. Then shakily took my first step. And the next. I found that the ground was damp and uneven; one lapse in attention and I'd be helplessly rooted in mud and left to the mercies of whatever resided in these parts. My gaze flickered from the hazards that lurked in my path to my surroundings, aware of the unseen creatures whose presence made the hairs on the back of my neck stand.
A rustle to my right, and my heart leapt up my throat. I swallowed, and slowly turned my head. Under the faint glow of the moon I saw a hazy sight.
Beside the abandoned ruins of what was once a home, was that a rabbit?
Fear rushed out of me, and I clucked. Stupid to have believed that old woman, I thought. Making sure to tread lightly, I ventured closer. The rabbit (a healthy looking specimen of white with brown spots) remained uninterested at my approach, and serenely continued chewing grass. I thought wonderingly of the years since I enjoyed time with a tame creature, and knelt down to greet it hello. The creature wriggled towards me.
I raised a hand, intending to graze the top of the rabbit's ears when it struck without warning. I saw a pair of blood-red eyes seconds before feeling the sharp, then dull ache of fangs digging into my neck. Surprised, I fell backwards with a muffled thump. My life was quickly ebbing away, and I was unable to even blink. And so I could only watch as the last image I had of this world was the victorious hell-rabbit before me howling into the night sky.
