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It was late when her and Chris once again made their way down the stairs. Their parents had gone to bed early, but unlike last time they weren't giddy with excitement. No, this time Misty couldn't feel anything but fear as she followed her brother down the stairs. She couldn’t help wondering how their parents would feel if they knew what they were about to do? Would they even believe them? No, she thought, she barely believed herself. Here they were after the death of one of their best friends going off into a swamp in the middle of the night once again, to look for a ghost. The ghost that more than likely killed him, she reminded herself.
“Hurry up!” Chris hissed at her. Misty realized that she had stopped right in the middle of the stairwell. She couldn’t remember ever being this scared in her entire life. Her hand still faintly trembling as she pulled it away from the railing. They made their way out to the shed and quickly donned the same pairs of muddy shoes that they had used the night before. With everything going on they had forgotten all about them. One look at her brother and it was clear, Chris didn’t want to be talked out of it, before Misty could even say what was on her mind he hefted the backpack filled with flashlights and set off on a quick pace towards the wooded path. She had to sprint a little just to catch up.
The moon was waning, making the path a lot darker than it had been the night before. It was eerily silent as they made their way through the path. Whenever Misty tried to walk beside him, Chris would out pace her making it clear that he wanted to be left alone with his thoughts. Well, that's fine by me, she said to herself falling behind him. It wasn’t like she knew what to say to him, anyway.
They kept waiting to hear the sounds from last night and jumped whenever their own feet broke a twig. If Mrs. Hernshaw was real, it wasn’t like she had to chase them tonight anyways. Misty figured, after all they were coming straight to her. All she had to do was wait. Stop it, Misty told herself. The last thing she needed was to freak herself out before they even got there. Besides, it could still all be fake right? They'd been pretty rattled last night and they could just be jumping to conclusions here. Besides in a small town like this the local doctor often served as the medical examiner as well. So, couldn’t Doctor Humphrey who just celebrated his 80th birthday last year have made a mistake? Maybe, Travis had an aneurysm or something, some sort of freak accident. She knew it wasn't true the moment she thought.
Something tugged at her as they cleared the path and the black top stretched out before them. Some part of herself knew it was all real. Even Chris seemed to slow down as they hit the road. The anger he'd been carrying earlier when they'd set off now replaced by raw fear, that flashed across his face for an instant only to vanish. But, it was there long enough for her to see it and secretly hope that'd he'd turn back. That the night could just end with them going back home and going to bed.
It wasn't to be, and he pushed on. Once again, before Misty could say anything to stop him. Chris hadn’t said much about Travis’ death, she realized. And perhaps going back to the swamp was the only way he knew how to deal with it. She just prayed that it wouldn’t be the death of them as well. She had plans for her life and dying in Beacon swamp wasn't one of them.
They were surprised that Mike actually showed. Yet, there he was standing in front of the same stop sign just like the night before. Looking even more afraid than he had the other night, in fact. It was a warm, summer night in Beacon Hills and Mike stood there, shaking by the sign as though he was chilled to the bone.
He gave them a sad wave as they walked towards him.
“Hey guys, didn’t think you were going to show there for a minute.” He said numbly. Which meant he had been hoping they wouldn’t, just like Misty had been. She gave him a sad smile in reply. Chris just nodded and trudged on towards the swamp while Misty and Mike both ran to catch up.
No cars passed them as they followed the road down to the bottom and climbed down the grassy knoll straight up to the edge of the wood line. If they had thought the silence in the path was eerie, it was nothing compared to the silence in the swampy forest before them. Not even the crickets were playing their usual tune tonight. It was as if the whole county was waiting for something to happen. They all stopped right there at the edge of the woods knowing that with the next step there was no turning back. Whatever happened next it had been their choice to come here.
Chris sighed, and Mike opened his mouth ready to say something in protest, Misty waited hoping that maybe Mike could get through to him. But, before he could speak Chris marched forward and let the woods swallow him up. Leaving the others with no choice but to follow. This time at least when the flash lights came out and were turned on they were able to find the paths they had made the night before. And with the way they had crashed through the other night they were easy to follow. This time they didn’t get completely covered in mud, but it was still too much for her taste. Misty decided that if they survived this, she was just going to throw these shoes out. They were beyond saving at this point.
It still took them a little while to make it back to the opening in the swamp when they did they found that the waters were just as still as the night before. It was like they'd never left. No, thought Misty, it was like the whole place was waiting for them to arrive. Like when her mother prepped the living room for company, what they were seeing now how been prepared for them, she was sure of it. Chris stood there on the waters edge, Misty and Mike too afraid to come to close to it. They could only watch in horror, waiting for him to be snatched up by something unspeakable. They waited like that for what felt like forever, but nothing happened. Nothing at all. Misty was about to start laughing at how absurd they all must look. Marching out here to find a ghost. What had she been thinking?
“Come out you bitch!” Chris shouted over the water and began to throw rocks at it. Misty and Mike both jumped. They expected to see something rise up like the night before, but again nothing. Chris turned his back on the water with a smile on his face. “See there, now that's that, lets go home.” He told them looking miserable. Misty knew that half the reason he'd come out here was to find a reason behind Travis's death, but either way they both knew that Travis would have been proud that they came back and debunked it once and for all. She just hoped that Chris realized that.
They all turned around to go back the home when the awful cackling began.