The afternoon sun was gleaming lowly in the sky when we arrived back at Ashton's house. It's gentle rays kissed the top of the old mysterious looking house, setting it ablaze in a warming glow. Now that I was seeing it in new light, the place looked far more peaceful and rather pulchritudinous in it's own unique way. The sun caressed Ashton's face and illuminated his golden eyes as he smiled over at me.
"Would you like to watch the sun set out by the lake before we study?" He asked as we walked up to the porch together.
"I'd love to, actually." I shyly smiled back at him. I had always had a deep love for sunrises and sunsets, and I wasn't going to miss out on a good opportunity to enjoy one.
"Perfect. I'll be right back then." He said with a grin and quickly went inside.
I stood there twiddling my thumbs as I awkwardly waited for him to return. My gaze began to shift towards the side of the yard at the towering grove of pendulous spruce. The weeping branches drooped mournfully from the weight of sharp draping needles and long slender cones. Twisted vines of wild rose bushes mercilessly reached up from the ground and ensnared the lower branches with their crimson kissed thorns, as if to imprison what ever was dwelling in the shadows beneath the dark imposing trees. It looked like the type of sinister forest that one might get lost in, and never return because they were consumed by some sort of wicked mythological creature.
The cold breeze gave me a shiver right as Ashton emerged back out of the house. Belzar rushed out from behind him and ran over to me, while barking and happily wagging his fluffy tail.
"Hello, Belzar!" I playfully cooed at him while petting his head. He jumped up to give my cheek a slobbery lick, causing me to giggle.
"Here, I thought that you might need this." Ashton was smiling endearingly at Belzar and I as he handed me a very large black denim jacket lined with soft fleece.
"Oh, thank you. I was starting to feel a bit cold." I smiled back over at him as I put it on.
The thing was huge and reached down to my knees, but it was incredibly warm. My senses were instantly bombarded with his wonderful fiery spicy scent, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that it was his jacket. I had to resist the urge to bury my nose in it, especially since he'd already caught me sniffing his shirt during my drunken escapade.
"I also brought you these to snack on, in case you're hungry." He handed me a small 'to go' package of roasted almonds.
"Oh, um, thank you." I hoped that he didn't notice my blush as I took them.
Of all the snacks he could have offered...
He put an arm around my upper back as he guided me along a narrow path through the rustling tall grass and wildflowers, leading down to the lake. Belzar ran ahead of us as we walked together, with me snuggled up to his side. My hand reached out and gently brushed along the rough tips of the tall grass, and the colorful asters, black-eyed susans, and occasional toad lilies. A few falling leaves swirled around us in the chilly breeze, and a murder of crows were noisily cawing from one of the old oaks by the water.
He led me over to a small stone bench that rested peacefully under one of the wise oaks that stretched it's mighty limps out over the shoreline. We sat down next to each other, and listened to the gentle waves lapping against the rocky shore and the eerie cries of loons echoing across the peaceful water. The lake was secluded and completely surrounded by dense forest and large mossy stones. The dancing ripples beautifully reflected the low almost setting sun, as the first whirls of mist began to glide out from beneath the trees and across the water like spirits twirling out from their graves in shadows.
"Have you finished reading the journal yet?" He casually asked while seemingly examining my face.
Why did he care so much about my opinion regarding the journal?
"Not yet, actually. But I'm almost done." I tucked an unruly strand of hair behind my ear to prevent it from blowing around in the breeze. "It's fascinating how she fell deeper and deeper in to what seemed like complete insanity by the end though. It was a side of her that I didn't know existed." A huge gust of wind suddenly blew my hair all willy-nilly around my face.
"What makes you think that she was insane?" He laughed and began smoothing my hair back down for me.
"Well you should know, since you read it too." I reached into my bag, pulled it out, and began flipping through the pale yellow pages. "Just look at all this crazy stuff about different dimensions, some dark powerful abyss, and the evil demon that's trapped there. It's all a bunch of madness!" I laughed a fake laugh to cover up the hurt that my aunt's insanity caused me. She must have been mentally suffering in the end.
"She really was fascinated by all that magical abyss stuff... Did you enjoy reading about the demon?" He continued to run his hand gently through my hair.
"What? No! That was one of the worst parts. I can't believe she was actually crazy enough to try to summon that monstrous thing! Like really? What a nutcase." I laughed and looked out over the water.
"What, you don't think that would be a good idea?" He teased and softly bumped my shoulder, but the laugh he let out sounded slightly forced.
"Well of course not!" I looked up at him to see his face smiling down at me. "Especially since this particular one was apparently imprisoned there for destroying several cities back in ancient times." I pointed to a paragraph where the demon was mentioned by it's name. "Thank goodness demons aren't real or she might have doomed us all if she actually tried to summon, Azathoth!"
"Well, if they were real, I'm sure that he would have a pretty good explanation for what he did." He laughed and put an arm around me.
I snuggled up against his warm body and softly giggled. He seemed to appreciate my move, and pulled me in closer while wrapping his other arm around my front. We gazed out over the water at the now setting sun. It was a breathtaking spectacle of rich illuminated crimson that bled into bright shades of purples, oranges, and pinks. The black crystalline waters reflected the light in beautiful shades of scarlet, gold, and midnight blue.
The dying sun sank lower behind the dark silhouette of the lofty mountain range, and I found myself eager for the growing darkness. The creeping mist grew thicker as the loons continued their mournful sounding calls. Ashton held me closely, caressing my arm, and occasionally kissing the top of my head, as I munched on the almonds. Belzar came over and sat beside me. He rested his large furry head in my lap, enjoying how I was gently stroking behind his soft ear.
Night's ominous black cloak slowly fell and consumed the land. The bright waning moon peeked out from behind the darkened horizon, and the stars began to twinkle like little gems sprinkled throughout the vast midnight blue sky. I was mesmerized by the celestial beauty, and time seemed to stand still. The cold breeze gently caressed my bare legs, causing me to shiver.
"We should go inside, you're getting cold." Ashton said while tucking my hair out of my face again and giving my lips a small kiss.
"Yeah probably, it's just so beautiful that I don't want to leave though." I was still looking up awestruck at the night sky.
"I know, but I wouldn't want you to get sick." He bopped my nose, stood up, and grabbed my hand to lead me inside. I turned my head around to get one last look at the horizon while following him back down the path.
YOU ARE READING
Unbinding the Demon
Paranormal"Don't bite your lip in front of me like that, Buttercup, or I might have to bend you over and f*ck you right here in this musty old library." Although he practically whispered, his deep voice was rough, almost a growl. He brushed his thumb across m...
