The sound of shouts and fervent voices drew closer, sending a shiver of dread down my spine. As I looked outside I could see a sea of angry faces, illuminated by the eerie glow of torchlight, closing in on my house. My fellow villagers, were now a mob armed with pitchforks, torches, and an assortment of other random tools. Just the mere sight of it paralyzed me in place. My breath caught in my throat as I watched the advancing horde draw nearer.
"Demon!"
"Monster!"
"Get out here and show us your face!"
As the mob drew closer I could see my friends from school, my teacher, the village elder and a whole bunch of other people I would talk with whenever I went into town. Amidst the crowd, I caught sight of my mother, struggling against the grip of the men who held her by her arms.
I'd never done anything wrong in my life, why did they have to attack me like that? I didn't even do anything! It wasn't fair!
They started throwing stones at my house, shattering the glass and even hitting me. The stones were thrown with full force but they didn't hurt me. My mother screamed and tried to break free, only to be silenced by the rough hands that forced her head to the ground.
The village elder stepped forward. He was a short old man with a long white beard.
"Laura! Come out and face your judgement." He bellowed.
Judgement, what judgment? I'd done nothing wrong. Then again... I guess there must be some reason behind all this.
I stepped outside, confronting the mob's accusing glares. They all fell into an uneasy silence, torn between judgment and uncertainty. Even my friends, regarded me with eyes brimming with fear.
"So it was true." The village elder said.
"Don't worry Laura," my mother said. "We can get through thi-
The men holding my mother proceeded to lift her head up and shove her face into the ground even harder to shut her up.
"Mom!" I yelled causing everyone to recoil in fear. I then turned to look at the village elder.
"You have no right to treat my mother like that. You are supposed to protect your citizens not abuse them." I felt a sudden rush of anger rush through me.
"It's her fault for hiding your origins from me. This is her punishment, she must watch you face execution at the hands of the villagers."
"Then punish me if you're so angry. Do something more than just beating my mom!" I shouted angrily.
The village elder sighed again, his demeanor softer. "We bear no desire for this outcome. We comprehend your innocence. But as village elder, I must safeguard our community."
Hyperventilation consumed me. Panic gnawed at my sanity. I clutched my chest, feeling my world spiral into disarray.
My vision blurred as tears welled, the surge of emotions crushing my resolve.
I clasped my hands in front of my face, observing the twisted, lengthened nails, my hands looked like demonic claws.
I jumped forward toward the village elder. My sense of reason toppled. I couldn't control myself anymore. I reached my hand out toward him and...
When I came to my senses I realized my hand was inches from the elder's throat, my hand curled in on itself as my nail pierced my palm bringing some of my reason back. The elder didn't move he just looked at me like I was some trash on the side of the road. I looked to the crowd and saw my school friends staring at me with looks of either shock or disgust.
I backed away, grasping my head and looking down at the ground.
"I'm sorry." I said as I backed away. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
I just kept repeating myself over and over again. Tears streamed down my face. I couldn't help it. That was all I thought I could do at that point.
It begun to rain and I just stood there grasping my head and crying. I could feel the horns, they felt disgusting.
I didn't want to be a demon. I was a good kid. I didn't deserve to be treated this way.
The villagers began pelting me with rocks again but they didn't hurt. They begun to surround me with their weapons. The villagers had apparently grown tired of waiting to kill me.
The rain continued to fall upon me and the men surrounding me.
"Why, why do this to me?" I whimpered. "I've never done anything bad in my life."
I looked over to where my mother was but she was gone. The two men who had been holding her were doubled over in pain. Where'd she go?
All of a sudden one of the men who had surrounded me fell to one knee clutching his left leg and the one right next to him was tackled from behind. It was mom.
"Laura run! Run as fast as you can!"
She was still crying but she looked strong. She began screaming at me to leave the village. So I ran. That momentary distraction was all I needed to break out of their encirclement. So I ran toward the forest with reckless abandon with the villager mob in hot pursuit.
I had never been this deep in the forest before because mom told me it was dangerous. I could hear the shouts of people behind me and the rain crashing down on the forest floor. I kept running but I couldn't out run my pursuers.
After running for what felt like an eternity I came to the top of a waterfall. As I tried to double back I could see the horde of villagers right behind me. They were right on me. I had nowhere to run.
My pursuers surrounded me once again but this time mom wasn't here to help me.
One of the men held his shovel toward me. "Look Laura. We don't want to be troubled by this any more so just be a good girl and let it happen."
All of them were tired of having to deal with me.
I knew I wasn't going to win in a fight.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
"No." I said. Without a moment's hesitation, I leapt from the waterfall.
The sound of shouts and fervent voices drew closer, sending a shiver of dread down my spine. As I looked outside I could see a sea of angry faces, illuminated by the eerie glow of torchlight, closing in on my house. My fellow villagers, were now a mob armed with pitchforks, torches, and an assortment of other random tools. Just the mere sight of it paralyzed me in place. My breath caught in my throat as I watched the advancing horde draw nearer.
"Demon!"
"Monster!"
"Get out here and show us your face!"
As the mob drew closer I could see my friends from school, my teacher, the village elder and a whole bunch of other people I would talk with whenever I went into town. Amidst the crowd, I caught sight of my mother, struggling against the grip of the men who held her by her arms.
I'd never done anything wrong in my life, why did they have to attack me like that? I didn't even do anything! It wasn't fair!
They started throwing stones at my house, shattering the glass and even hitting me. The stones were thrown with full force but they didn't hurt me. My mother screamed and tried to break free, only to be silenced by the rough hands that forced her head to the ground.
The village elder stepped forward. He was a short old man with a long white beard.
"Laura! Come out and face your judgement." He bellowed.
Judgement, what judgment? I'd done nothing wrong. Then again... I guess there must be some reason behind all this.
I stepped outside, confronting the mob's accusing glares. They all fell into an uneasy silence, torn between judgment and uncertainty. Even my friends, regarded me with eyes brimming with fear.
"So it was true." The village elder said.
"Don't worry Laura," my mother said. "We can get through thi-
The men holding my mother proceeded to lift her head up and shove her face into the ground even harder to shut her up.
"Mom!" I yelled causing everyone to recoil in fear. I then turned to look at the village elder.
"You have no right to treat my mother like that. You are supposed to protect your citizens not abuse them." I felt a sudden rush of anger rush through me.
"It's her fault for hiding your origins from me. This is her punishment, she must watch you face execution at the hands of the villagers."
"Then punish me if you're so angry. Do something more than just beating my mom!" I shouted angrily.
The village elder sighed again, his demeanor softer. "We bear no desire for this outcome. We comprehend your innocence. But as village elder, I must safeguard our community."
Hyperventilation consumed me. Panic gnawed at my sanity. I clutched my chest, feeling my world spiral into disarray.
My vision blurred as tears welled, the surge of emotions crushing my resolve.
I clasped my hands in front of my face, observing the twisted, lengthened nails, my hands looked like demonic claws.
I jumped forward toward the village elder. My sense of reason toppled. I couldn't control myself anymore. I reached my hand out toward him and...
When I came to my senses I realized my hand was inches from the elder's throat, my hand curled in on itself as my nail pierced my palm bringing some of my reason back. The elder didn't move he just looked at me like I was some trash on the side of the road. I looked to the crowd and saw my school friends staring at me with looks of either shock or disgust.
I backed away, grasping my head and looking down at the ground.
"I'm sorry." I said as I backed away. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
I just kept repeating myself over and over again. Tears streamed down my face. I couldn't help it. That was all I thought I could do at that point.
It begun to rain and I just stood there grasping my head and crying. I could feel the horns, they felt disgusting.
I didn't want to be a demon. I was a good kid. I didn't deserve to be treated this way.
The villagers began pelting me with rocks again but they didn't hurt. They begun to surround me with their weapons. The villagers had apparently grown tired of waiting to kill me.
The rain continued to fall upon me and the men surrounding me.
"Why, why do this to me?" I whimpered. "I've never done anything bad in my life."
I looked over to where my mother was but she was gone. The two men who had been holding her were doubled over in pain. Where'd she go?
All of a sudden one of the men who had surrounded me fell to one knee clutching his left leg and the one right next to him was tackled from behind. It was mom.
"Laura run! Run as fast as you can!"
She was still crying but she looked strong. She began screaming at me to leave the village. So I ran. That momentary distraction was all I needed to break out of their encirclement. So I ran toward the forest with reckless abandon with the villager mob in hot pursuit.
I had never been this deep in the forest before because mom told me it was dangerous. I could hear the shouts of people behind me and the rain crashing down on the forest floor. I kept running but I couldn't out run my pursuers.
After running for what felt like an eternity I came to the top of a waterfall. As I tried to double back I could see the horde of villagers right behind me. They were right on me. I had nowhere to run.
My pursuers surrounded me once again but this time mom wasn't here to help me.
One of the men held his shovel toward me. "Look Laura. We don't want to be troubled by this any more so just be a good girl and let it happen."
All of them were tired of having to deal with me.
I knew I wasn't going to win in a fight.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
"No." I said. Without a moment's hesitation, I leapt from the waterfall.
