Painted Graveyard
The scene was rather ghastly with its odd green and red substances staining the ground. The cool night wind brought the smell of human blood to the area, making the young girl sitting against the old oaken tree gag. Her hands shook with the effort to wipe away the earthen mixture of red and green from her light blue hoodie. Tears streamed down her pale face as she only managed to get more substance in between her nails and her fingers.
She didn't mean to do it.
The girl drew her knees up to her chest as the wind whipping mocked the sound of the dead, making her flinch at every whistle and crack. In front of her, a puddle of the substances gathered around a circle of charred grass that contrasted with the deep green of the ground. She blinked a couple of times, hoping it was just a bad dream. Hoping that she would see him poke out from the tree lines with a grin on his face. Looking alive.
She opened her eyes again, green still filled her vision all while the charred circle remained present in front of her.
It had happened so fast, her body responding before her mind could follow what was happening. The coldness had seeped into her bones when she saw what she now knew was ectoplasm. She didn't comprehend. Her body and mind were two and two. With her mind checking out as she reached out to deliver a deadly stroke of death.
Why? Why did it have to be him?
Her heart clenched as she recalled the glowing eyes and the widening grin, the sickly color radiating off him in loops. The girl wrapped her arms around her knees, burying her face into the fabric of her stained jeans. Sobs wracked her small body filling the emptiness of the air as the light footsteps of grace reached her ears.
"Hello, dear girl."
The voice of a male made the girl whip up from her knees to feel a rush of cold air hit her. In front of her was a tall, graceful man in his mid-thirties with his dark hair slicked back, deep blue eyes meeting pale gray. Fear clenched at her mind, making her back away from the sharply dressed man who seemed to appear from thin air. She opened and closed her mouth as the man stared at the girl kindly, not paying attention to the surrounding mess.
"W-who are you?", She asked, dread sinking into her bones, making her shoulder shake with the effort of holding in her fear.
The man regarded her with the tip of his head as he finally looked around at their surroundings. Turning back to the frightened girl, the man crouched down to her level, gloved hands resting on his knees. His blue eyes sparkled in the little light that the moon provided through the night as the girl stared back at the strange man.
"Do you do this, my dear?", He asked, ignoring her fear as he motioned to the remains of what she thought was a human being. She knew better now in the worst way possible.
The girl clenched her hands into fists to hide the tremors running through them as she nodded her head slightly, tears pricking at her eyes. The man in question only nodded in return almost lost in his thoughts as he smiled slightly at the girl.
"Impressive, if I must say," The man said, still smiling at the confused girl, "At such a young age."
The girl felt confusion rock her core. What did this man want? Why was he saying these things to her? Was he going to arrest her?
The man, who seemed to read her thoughts, let out a soft laugh, taking the girl by surprise as he stood to his feet. Slipping a hand into his pocket, he said,
"I'm not here for your head, dear girl. Quite the opposite."
The girl felt fear ebb away from her body, for some odd reason, trusting what the man was telling her. Slowly, the girl got to her feet, feeling the cold bite at her face as she stuffed her hands into the pockets of her sweater.
"Then what do you want?", She asked, her voice slightly wavering under the gaze of the strange man and his mysterious smile.
"To help, my dear."