Floridian Mansion

By

Sam Flemming

Have you ever seen a haunted house? You know the kind I mean: That old dark house that's usually at the end of a dimly-lit street. The owners haven't been seen for years. No one really knows why. The windows are broken and boarded, and the shutters hang loose on the hinges. The trees have grown wild, their branches brush against the sides of the weathering house, making strange noises in the night. There's a high, vine-covered fence around the property. Is it there to keep somebody out, or is it there to keep something inside? It's a house that people avoid walking past at night. Strange sounds come from within the walls. And it said that eerie lights have been seen both in the attic windows, and in the graveyard at the side of the house. Our story revolves around this mysterious mansion. It was a dark and gloomy night. Rain was pouring down like a waterfall. Adam Chapman, a young teenager, is running down the sidewalk, drenched, carrying an umbrella. "Oh, great, I had to choose this crappy day to see a movie," he says to himself, while running, "At this rate, I'll never get out of this mess." He glances at a weathering mansion at the end of the street. It was foreboding. He ran as fast as he could to get to the house to wait until the rain stopped. Was this a good decision? He walks to the door, trying to open it. He had no luck opening it. "Come on, stupid door. Open," he says out loud, using a gift card to open the door. After a while, he got it open. He walked it, wiping his muddy feet on the rug. He noticed the room looked dismal and creepy. He was in a small room, able to fit ten to twenty people in it. "Good evening," said a mysterious voice in the house. Adam felt a chill on his spine. "Who's there," he said, while looking around, scared. Before he could say anything else, the door behind him closes by itself. Adam ran towards the door, trying to open it, but to no avail. "It's locked," he exclaimed, rattling the doorknob. Suddenly, the candles in every room light up. An organ is playing a dirgeful tune.

"When hinges creak in door less chambers and strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls, whenever candle lights flicker where the air is deathly still, that is the time when ghosts are present, practicing their terror with ghoulish delight. Welcome, foolish mortal, to The Haunted Mansion. I am your host. Your ghost host (chuckle). Our tour begins here, in this gallery, here where you see paintings of some of our guests as they appeared in their corruptible, mortal state." Adam notices the four paintings were of a woman with an umbrella, a bald gentleman, a man with a hat folding his arms, and an old lady holding a rose. Suddenly, he notices the paintings' frames were stretching, and the paintings were showing more than what it was before. The lady with the umbrella was on a tightrope over a river with a crocodile waiting for her to drop in; the gentleman was in his boxers and was standing on top of a barrel of dynamite with a candle near the fuse; the man in the hat was actually sitting on another man's shoulders as was the man on another man who was sinking in quicksand; the old lady was sitting on top of a grave with a bust representing the corpse with an axe on his head. "This can't be happening," Adam said, looking at the paintings every time. "Your cadaverous pallor betrays an aura of foreboding... almost as though you sense a disquieting metamorphosis... is this haunted room actually stretching? Or is it your imagination, hmmm," said the Ghost Host, chuckling on his comment, "And consider this dismaying observation... this chamber has no windows and no doors. Which offers you this chilling challenge: To find... a way OUT! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Of course, there's always my way..." The room goes black. Adam looks up and sees thunder shining the ceiling, revealing a skeleton hung on a rope. The entire room was pitch black. The only sound heard was the sound of a woman's scream falling down.

The room lights up slowly. "Ohh…I didn't mean to frighten you... prematurely, hmm hm hmmm... The REAL chills come later. Now, as they say, look alive and we'll continue our little tour. You have nothing to worry about. You will not be harmed, but you will not leave until the tour is over." Adam didn't have a choice. It seemed he didn't have anywhere to go, until a door opens, revealing a hallway. Adam walked along the hallway, and noticed something. It was a strange vehicle, in which was small enough to drive in the hallways. "And now, a carriage approaches to take you into the boundless realm of the supernatural. Kindly watch your step, please." Adam sits in the buggie and it slowly drives. "Do NOT pull down on the safety bar please. I will lower it for you. And heed this warning: the spirits will materialize only if you remain quietly seated with your hands, arms, feet and legs inside, please," said the Ghost Host, as the safety bars went down in front of Adam. He held on to them, feeling uneasy about being in the house. As he enters the first corridor, he notices a candle floating by itself up on a balcony. As the buggie turns, he sees a hallway of ghastly-looking paintings. As he continues driving through the hallway, the paintings' eyes follow him. As if he's being watched. He took out his camera and was about to take a picture, until… "Oh yes! And no flash pictures, please! We spirits are frightfully sensitive to bright lights...," said the Ghost Host, as Adam put his camera back in his pocket. As he exits the hallway, he enters the library, where there are a lot of books on every wall, two busts on the shelves, which would turn to Adam as he was moving, and a small-cobwebbed piano playing by itself… or is it? "Our library is well-stocked with priceless first editions. Only ghost stories, of course. And marble busts of the greatest ghost writers the literary world has ever known. They have all -retired- here, to the Haunted Mansion," the Ghost Host said, "Actually, we have 999 happy haunts here, but there's room for 1000. Would you like to volunteer? Hmmm? If you should decide to join us, final arrangements may be made at the end of the tour." "I think I'll pass," Adam replied. Adam is driven up the stairs; along his way, he sees a huge orange spider, sitting in its web, quietly by itself. "God, I hate spiders. Why did it have to be spiders?"

Adam enters the upper chambers, dimly-lit candles lighting the room. He notices a hallway, with a floating candle by the hallway. The hallway seemed very long, like it beckoned him to enter, but offering no end. As he continues, he notices a suit of medieval armor. He noticed something awkward about it. "Is it me, did it…move?" He sees dusty velvet armchair rests. "We find it delightfully unlivable here in this ghostly retreat. Every room has wall-to-wall creeps and hot-and-cold running chills... Shhhh - listen," said the Ghost Host. Adam listens carefully, hearing ghostly moans. He then sees a casket on a table, with skeleton hands trying to break open it, a green glow emitting inside, and inside a voice is shouting, "Let me outta' here! Let me out!" Adam could do nothing but watch. He was scared, thinking that it might come out and put him in it. As the tour continues, he sees more chairs, rotting plants in old vases, and doors, in which was full of ghosts waiting to get out. He also sees a clock, which has a thirteenth hour. Soon, he is stopped right in front of a small table, where in the middle stood a crystal ball. The room Adam guessed he was in was a séance room. Suddenly, inside the crystal ball was glowing green smoke. Then, a woman's face appears. It was Madame Leota, the mansion's gypsy. She has a remarkable head for materializing… the disembodied.

Serpents, and spiders, tail of a rat,
Call in the spirits, where-ever they're at!
moans and screams fill the room
Rap on a table, it's time to respond,
Send us a message, from regions beyond!
three slow knocks from the two tables
Goblins and ghoulies from last Halloween,
Awaken the spirits with your tambourines!
a nearby hovering tambourine shakes and echoes
Creepies and crawlies, toads in a pond,
Let there be music, from regions beyond!
every instrument in the room plays in harmony
Wizards and witches, where-ever you dwell,
Give us a hint, by ringing a bell!
a nearby bell shakes violently

Soon, his buggie continues on, and then the Ghost Host says, "The happy haunts have received your sympathetic vibrations, and are beginning to materialize. They've assembled for a swinging wake, and they'll be expecting me. I'll see you a little later..." Soon, Adam is on top of a balcony, and is overlooking of what was going on below. A party was going on in the ballroom. On the dining table, ghosts were celebrating a ghost's birthday. As the ghost blows out the candles, she also blew out the guests. A few ghosts were sitting on a chandelier above the dining table, having wine. A few ghost couples were dancing, while a ghost played the organ, as ghost heads where flying out of each organ. "I never knew ghosts would be good dancers," said Adam, "especially their feet aren't touching the ground." Soon, Adam found himself in the attic. It looked like every attic looked like: dusty, web-cobbed, etc. Except, it was dustier and more web-cobbed. Suddenly, ghosts popped up, scaring the living heck out of him. Three of them wore suits and top hats. By the attic window, he sees a ghostly bride holding a candle, her heart visible to see, beating normally. The buggie slowly went out the window and slowly down to the ground. He sees a graveyard entrance, by the gates he sees a gravedigger and his dog, both scared to death. Adam enters the graveyard, and sees five ghosts playing instruments, rather badly. Soon, he hears ghosts singing a dirgeful, yet catchy song. And it goes something like this…

When the crypt doors creak and the tombstones quake
Spooks come out for a swinging wake
Happy haunts materialize
And begin to vocalize
Grim grinning ghosts come out to socialize!

Now don't close your eyes and don't try to hide
Or a silly spook may sit by your side
Shrouded in a daft disguise
They pretend to terrorize
Grim grinning ghost come out to socialize!

As the moon climbs high 'ore the dead oak tree
Spooks arise for the midnight spree
Creepy creeps with eerie eyes
Start to shriek and harmonize
Grim Grinning Ghosts come out to socialize!

When you hear the knell of a requiem bell
Weird glows gleam where spirits dwell
Restless bones etherize
Rise as spooks of every size
Demonic laughter

He finally sees the ghosts who were singing the song repeatively. There were five busts, one was broken. They were alive enough to sing. Then, he sees a hearse stuck in the mud, with a few Victorian ghosts drinking tea, and singing the song as well. He also sees a mummy and an old ghost, who apparently can't hear what he's singing. He then sees two opera ghosts, one was and old, skinny male ghost, the other was a fat female ghost. He finally sees three ghosts, one was an executioner holding an axe, another was a knight holding his head, and another was an old ghost with a ball and chain. After leaving the graveyard, Adam found himself on the side walk of where the mansion's gate fence was. He sees an envelope in his hand. He opens it and it said…

Did you enjoy the tour?

I told you would not be harmed. Come again soon. Bring your friends. And, pleasant dreams.

Yours truly,

Your Ghost Host

Adam walked all the way home. The next evening, Adam was walking down the same sidewalk with his friend, Janette. He told her about the mansion. But, she didn't believe his ghost story, so he decided to show her the truth. They went up to the door, Adam opened it, and Janette went in first. It was dark in the room. "This is a joke, right," Janette said, thinking it was a practical joke. "Good evening," said a ghostly voice. "What was that," asked Janette, a little scared. Soon, the candles in the small room lit up, and an organ's eerie tune plays in the air.

(A/N: END! Rate and review. Also, I'm still working on Disney World 2, so you might expect a new chapter soon.)