This story came to me one afternoon at work when I was thinking about the movie Hocus Pocus. P.S. I have seen the movie the whole way through maybe twice and I never remember it, so, even though the beginning may be a bit similar, it will not stay that way. I have started to plan out this story, but as it progresses, it will still require more planning.
I had the hardest time coming up with a title for this story. Eventually I went with this one, but it may or may not change in the future.
By the way (and I promise I'll only say it once in this story), if you want to keep up with information about my stories, I have a Twitter that you can follow. Info for that is on my Fanfiction profile.
Okay, so…here we go. I hope you enjoy the story!
Chapter 1: Strange Happenings In Burgess
Darkness. Fear. Pitch Black. The Boogeyman. So many names for the same thing…person. It's said that he will lure kids away from their homes and feed upon their fear, consuming it to grow stronger. I know firsthand that this statement, this claim, is true because I have seen it happen. In fact, I tried to stop it from happening and it forever changed my life. My name is Jack Frost. That wasn't always my name. Allow me to explain. Let me take you back to the small settlement of Burgess in the year 1710. That is where my tale, this story, begins.
Jackson Overland bolted upright in the dark and he immediately sensed that something wasn't quite right. Across the room, he could see that his sister also sat upright and he relaxed a little, knowing now why he had awoken. Usually, Emma slept through the night. "Emma, are you okay?" he whispered.
"Jack, I'm scared."
"It's okay, Emma. I'm right here. There's no reason to be afraid," Jackson comforted his ten-year old sister. "Nothing's going to hurt you. I won't let them." From across the room, he heard his sister chuckle nervously. It's not working. She's still afraid. "Emma, you can come and sleep over here in bed with me if that will help you feel better."
Jackson waited for a few moments but the shadow that he knew to be Emma never moved. He lay back down and closed his eyes. Before he knew it, Jackson had fallen back into a peaceful sleep. The next time he awoke, maybe an hour later, he again felt something amiss. It was still dark, probably around 3AM. The witching hour.
Lying still, Jackson stared into the darkness and listened for any indication about why he had awakened. Across the room, he heard Emma stir, stand from her bed and start to walk across the room. Instantly, he remembered his promise. Finally she had given up and was coming over to climb into bed with him. Jackson gripped the covers and prepared to lift them so Emma could crawl in beside him. However, his attempt halted when he heard Emma walk past him. Still not moving a muscle, Jackson craned his ears to listen to Emma's soft footsteps. It's okay, he reassured himself. She's just relieving herself in the outhouse. His reassures fell flat, though, when he heard the soft opening and shutting of the front door; the outhouse was outside the back door of the house.
The opening and shutting of the front door was so soft that Jackson knew he would surely have missed it if he were not focusing so hard on listening to Emma's footsteps.
Emma! Whipping the covers off, Jackson jumped up and raced quietly to the front door. In his haste, he did not even bother to throw shoes on his bare feet. Instead, he grabbed his brown cloak on the way out and tied it around his neck on the way out.
Jackson did not open and shut the door as quietly as Emma had, but he was in a hurry. He had to catch Emma and stop her…because he could just tell that something very wrong was happening here in Burgess on this night.
From the light of the full moon, Jackson could make out Emma's silhouette in the distance, moving away from him. Where was she going?
Racing at top speed, Jackson was dismayed to notice that, no matter how fast he ran, he still was unable to catch up to his sister. How was that possible? This strange phenomenon increased the nervousness inside Jackson. Things were definitely amiss in Burgess.
Jackson raced after Emma through the forest surrounding Burgess. He ran past his favorite lake where he and Emma enjoyed ice skating in the winter and swimming in the summer. Tonight, though, he had no time to stop and reminisce the beauty of the full moon rippling over the almost-still water.
Following Emma, Jackson came to a strange clearing and he was surprised to find a small house. Who lives here? They're not someone we'd know. No one from Burgess lives out here alone in the forest. That didn't stop Emma from walking in the door.
Knowing that it would be unwise to just blindly follow Emma through the door, Jackson crept quietly over to one of the cabin's windows. Slowly, he peered in and almost gasped aloud at the sight he found. Emma was sitting, straight and unmoving, in a wooden chair in the center of the room. From his distance, Jackson could barely make out Emma's face, but she appeared to be staring unblinking and straight in front of her as if under some sort of spell. Flitting around the room was a tall dark shadowy figure of a man. "No…" Jackson whispered. He had heard stories of this: a dark man who would lure children away from their homes and feed upon their fear, using it to grow stronger. Many a child had died from this practice…and Emma was to be next! Jackson berated himself for not figuring it out sooner. Emma was ten now, the perfect age for…this. I have to save her!
While the man (Jackson believed he had heard him referred to as Pitch Black a time or two in the stories) had his back turned to the window, Jackson tested the ledge, feeling for a lock. Finding none, Jackson let out a sigh. Of course it's a window that locked from the inside. What were the chances that it was unlocked? Positioning his hands beneath the lower edge of the window, Jackson pushed up, cringing at the noise the old window made. Seeing no sign that Pitch Black had heard the noise, though, Jackson continued, overjoyed when the window slowly slid upwards.
Jackson opened the window just enough to allow his tall slim figure to slip into the cabin. Though the opening was a little narrow, Jackson had little problems slipping inside; he'd snuck in and out of his own house before to play tricks in the dead of night. This time, though, there were no tricks to play. There was just the serious reminder to save Emma before it was too late.
Before Pitch could turn around and spot Jackson, he snuck into a dark corner, hoping the shadows were enough to conceal him long enough to form a successful plan to rescue his sister.
So…as I was writing, I decided to split this opening scene up into two chapters. I didn't want this first chapter to be overwhelming.
You have no idea how excited I am for this story. I have the plot points planned out and I will be fleshing them out as the story develops. With that said, I'll talk with you all again in chapter 2!
Thank you all for reading and supporting Nothing To Fear!
Posted: August 30, 2015