Absinthe's Needle

If you’ve ever dared wander out alone at night, you will have seen strange things. Most of them are hidden, thrust into the depths of darkness so that even the worthiest hunters cannot track them. But they’re there. And if you’ve ever ventured out to take a twilight stroll, you’ve awoken creatures unheard of by mankind. That’s why Mother Nature had the humans go to sleep once darkness fell. She had to protect them from the horrors prowling in the black cover of the night, waiting to snatch their prey in their deathly jaws. 

But once in a blue moon, an unfortunate soul will wander out, hoping to relieve their troubles in the stillness of midnight. However, they are always unaware of the terrors hidden away, slowly creeping out to feed on those who dare cross their path. 

That’s what happened to Felix Plodder. His life had taken a nasty turn, his school grades drastically dropping and his parents turning sour. His older sister had joined a gang of cruel bullies, who had taken up the hobby of stealing candy from little children. Felix’s pet turtle, Clyde, had gotten sick and died, and Mr. And Mrs. Plodder were talking about selling the house and moving to Italy. None of this appealed to Felix, and so he himself turned mean and shot out at everyone who tried to talk to him. 

On February 2^nd, Felix couldn’t sleep. His worries and troubles crept into his head again and again, no matter how many times he pushed them out. His bedsheets became uncomfortable. 

Finally, at 12:01 AM, Felix could stand it no longer. He tossed his blanket on the floor and donned a red jacket, unlocked the front door, and crept outside unnoticed. 

He took a breath of fresh, crisp air and let out a sigh of relief. His bare feet shivered, and it occurred to him that he should have put on boots before going out. He couldn’t risk making noise in the house, however, and so didn’t go back inside.

The front yard was closed in, surrounded by a white fence and gate. Opening the gate, Felix walked down the grass path that led into a small patch of woods that outlined his town. 

Dirt crumbled under Felix’s feet. It was unnaturally soft. So soft that he wanted to lay down and go back to sleep. He shook his head. Don’t be silly, he thought. You can’t sleep in the woods. 

He walked into the woods, unsure of why he was there. He had only meant to go out into the garden and sit down for a while until his head cleared. But he had somehow found his way into the woods. It was as if something was calling him inside, a gentle voice whispering his name, so quiet that he could only barely hear it. 

Felix walked deeper and deeper into the trees, the land around him growing darker as he walked. Shadows in strange shapes crept on the ground close to his feet, and he jumped. You can’t be scared, he told himself. Don’t be a coward. 

“Hmm hmm, hmm hmm, hmmm…” Somebody was singing. Felix held his breath and turned around. There was nothing there except for a clump of bushes and the surrounding fir trees. He looked up. The sky had turned misty white. 

He must have imagined the humming. Felix plodded on, as if he had a destination he was travelling to. I really need to go back, he thought urgently. But his feet wouldn’t obey. They were taking him somewhere, and he couldn’t stop them. 

“Stop!” He panicked. “I want to go home!” He cringed at how childish that sounded, but quickly forgot about it. He couldn’t stop walking. His feet had a mind of their own. 

“HELP!” He shouted. “MOM? DAD? HELP ME!” He only walked faster, until he was forced into a run. He grabbed onto a low tree branch, but it only snapped in his hands. He had lost control of his body. 

Suddenly, he stopped. He heard the humming again. “Hmm hm, hmm hm, hum hmm, hum hm.” The music was driving him mad, like a soft lullaby that was trying to put him to sleep forever. He pressed his hands over his ears and fought the urge to scream. Why did I come out here? He thought shakily. 

He felt cold. Too cold. So cold that it felt like ice crystals were forming in his bloodstream, slowly frosting his heart and turning it into a block of ice. “Hum hm, hmm hm, hum hm…” 

He heard footsteps behind him. Blood pounding in his ears, Felix turned. 

There was a girl. 

She was softly humming, her head bowed. She looked about Felix’s age, around thirteen or fourteen. But she was gruesome. Her black hair hung in a shaggy mess down her back, with white dust outlining the strands. She wore a torn nightgown, the back of it trailing on the ground. Her hands were pale and scabbed, her fingernails caked with dirt and dried blood. But the worst thing about her were her eyes. They glinted bright yellow against the rest of her pale body, shining so bright and so evil that Felix thought he’d die just by looking at them. 

“H-hello?” Felix’s voice was small. The girl only hummed louder, inching towards him. Felix’s heard pounded so fast he thought it would tear right out of his chest. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, getting stronger as the girl crept closer, an eerie smile growing on her face. 

Felix tried to run. But he couldn’t. His feet yet again would not obey. They had brought him to the horrifying girl, and they would not let him leave. 

“GO AWAY!” Felix yelled. “NOW! LEAVE ME ALONE!” He shouted with all his might, hoping the girl would go away. But she didn’t. The air turned still as she walked closer to him, until they were just one foot apart. 

“I know you,” she whispered, her voice hoarse. “I know who you are, Felix Plodder.” 

“NO YOU DON’T!” Felix shouted in her face, but the girl didn’t even flinch. 

“Nobody will help you,” the girl said, her smile growing bigger still. “Nobody ever will. Not ever again. You will never escape the forest. You will never escape me.” 

“YES, I WILL!” Felix screamed again. The girl touched his hand, making him shake even more. He tried to turn away, but he was frozen in place. 

“No,” she said in a low voice. “You will not. You are staying with me forever.” She reached into the front of her nightgown and pulled out a small black needle. Felix strained and strained again. Nothing would help him. He couldn’t move. 

The girl looked at Felix with her yellow, cat-like eyes. “My name is Absinthe,” she said. “And I’m going to keep you.” 

Felix’s throat closed. He couldn’t speak. He couldn’t even blink. He was completely frozen. It felt like he had gone swimming in a lake, and had been frozen under, bathing in ice-cold water. 

Absinthe raised the wicked needled, the black point glinting. She thrust it into Felix’s hand, making pain explode throughout his whole body. He felt blood trickling off his palm. 

Absinthe laughed; a murderous, cackling laugh that seemed to shake the whole forest. A raven cawed. Thunder rolled in the sky. 

Felix’s last thought was, if only I hadn’t gone out…