Thanks to my best friend (the real, live "Jake") for inspiring me to write this story. I would also like to thank all those authors who have written amazing 'Supernatural' fan fictions. All of you have inspired me to put my own up. I hope everyone enjoys it. Happy belated Thanksgiving to all!
Chapter 1
Sleepy Hollow, Illinois
"Kira, you okay down there?" A voice called from the illuminated doorway. Her flashlight beam swung around the area of the basement in front of her. She switched the flashlight to her other hand, tucking a strand of chestnut brown hair behind her ear in an attempt to quell her nervousness. The sound of the windows rattling on the other side of the room only added to the unexplained sense of anxiousness that was slowly coming over her.
"Yeah, everything's fine," she called back, taking another step down the stairs. "Where did you say the fuse box was again?" A moment of silence followed. Kira climbed down the steps until she reached the bottom. The smooth tile felt cold underfoot.
"It's under the stairs in the small closet." Jake's voice seemed so far away. Kira rounded the banister, the light from the flashlight in her hand bobbed in front of her. A loud creak sounded to the right of her. She swung the beam of light in that direction, revealing a rocking chair that moved back and forth, slowly. Kira shrugged it off as a draft from the harsh wind that continued to shake the windows.
Turning her attention back to her task, she quickly found the closet under the stairs. The fuse box was in the corner of the closet. Kira opened the little metal door on the box, immediately seeing the source of their problem.
"What did you do?" She called up to Jake, teasingly. "The whole house is out!"
"So, hurry up and turn them back on. It's getting creepy up here!"
"You're telling me," she muttered under her breath, flipping two of the switches back into their "On" position. "Anything?"
"Nope. Nothing. Try it again. Sometimes it takes a minute." She could hear the confusion in Jake's voice. A sudden shiver of fear coursed through her; the memory of her dream coming back to her.
She hadn't told Jake that two nights ago she had a dream about this exact situation. When he had asked her to go turn on the electricity in the basement, Kira was met with a strong sense of deja vu. With each new move that she made, the contents of the dream slowly returned to her. She remembered the strong feeling of cold and the sensation of complete darkness as she walked. She remembered turning on the switches and Jake telling her that it had not worked; to give it time. Then, she had turned around at the touch of a hand, and... no, no. That really couldn't happen. No. Not now, not ever.
The feeling of doubt still remained strong within her. She had had these kind of dreams before, just not about something so serious as this. It was always about some routine action or moment when something completely normal occurred. Whether her dreams were of something of importance or not, they always came true. That's what really scared her.
Kira jiggled the switches one more time.
"Anything?" There was a long pause. No response came. "Jake," she called, stepping out of the closet and heading toward the side of the stairs. "Are you still there?" At that moment, she felt a slight pressure on her shoulder. She started, her breath catching in her throat. Kira whirled around, expecting to see Jake there, but there was no one. She felt like she should run; to climb up the stairs and never look back, but something in the back of her mind kept her there. Rational thought told her that there was nothing really there.
"Jake," she called more insistently. "Are you the.." Kira broke off, screaming, as an unseen force grabbed her and shoved her against the far wall. She was held up against the wall by a strong pressure that felt like a man's grip. Struggling for breath, she attempted to pry the invisible hand off of her neck to no avail. She tried to call for Jake, but her scream died as a gurgle in her throat. Glancing down, Kira could see where she had dropped the flashlight when she had suddenly been pulled backwards. The beam flickered slightly, illuminating the floor in front of it for a brief moment before blinking out. Tears sprang to Kira's eyes as she struggled, desperately, to get out of the grip of this unseen force. She knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer. Her lungs were burning, crying out for her to take a breath.
Without warning, a pair of human-like eyes appeared in front of her. They hovered there and seemed to study her for a long moment. The piercing blue, almost violet, hue to the eyes gave Kira the sensation that her soul was being searched.
"Listen!" The soft, masculine voice moved closer to her as the eyes made their way toward the left side of her body. They stopped just inches from her head. "I can't get out! Through the thorns, though you'll bleed. Come, come, get to me." Kira locked eyes with the figure for a long moment before they faded into the darkness, and she was dropped from the wall.
The door at the top of the stairs splintered open. Kira hadn't even noticed that it had slammed shut in the midst of her ordeal.
"Kira!" Jake shouted her name, his feet pounding down the wooden steps. He found her lying on her side, clutching at her neck, and taking in great gulps of air. She struggled to sit up when she noticed him there. He put his hands gently under her back and shoulders, lifting her to lean against him.
"Kira, what happened?" There was no mistaking the worry in his voice. "I heard you scream. The basement door slammed shut, and I couldn't get it open. I thought you were playing a joke on me."
"It was no joke," Kira managed to gasp out, pulling her hair away from her neck. There, on her otherwise pale, ivory skin was a large, vibrant red handprint. A look of unadulterated fear crossed Jake's features.
"Oh God."