Crow Forest

Chapter Ten

Parker and Matthew were sitting quietly, enjoying their drinks and biscuits. She felt tired mainly from the journey into the forest. She wanted to curl up and fall asleep for a while. Matthew stood up with a smile and held out his hand for Parker to take. "C'mon, there's one more place I want to show you", Matthew hummed. Parker gave the nod, then took his hand. He pulled the girl up and onto her feet, then whisked her away to a latter in a corner leading to the roof-tree house.

Matthew unlocked the hatch and pushed it up. He pulled himself up and onto the roof, then disappeared from view. Parker gazed after, then followed. One step after another, she climbed higher and higher. Finally, Parker pulled herself up on the roof, and as she did, her mouth fell open in shock to see a hand-built staircase winding around the tree to the top. Matthew was standing on the steps of the stairs, looking back at her with the biggest grin she had ever seen.

"Come on, don't be afraid", Matthew encouraged as he climbed up the ladder into the leaves. "Wait!" Parker called after him, also ascending the stairs. The leaves brushed her arms, legs and hair. She pushed branches out of her eyes and stumbled blindly, listening to Matthews calling laughs.

Finally, Parker stopped on a platform overlooking the forest. Her eyes lit up in awe as she took the stunning view in. She could see the school and town not too far off. "Woah!" Parker breathed as she marvelled at the spectacular scenery. "Yeah, you can see everything from here" Matthew grinned as he walked over to Parker. "Pretty cool ey?" He beamed. "Cool! This is breathtaking!" Parker exclaimed. Matthew nodded in agreement before turning his head and walking closer to the platform's edge.

"Over there is the diner, Oh! and over there is my house!" Matthew chuckled as he pointed out over the trees. Parker nodded, not paying attention to what he was saying. "Look, there's the school", Matthew laughed. Parker smiled as she saw the school they escaped from, but then her eyes wandered over to a house on the outskirts of the town she had never seen before. It was directly opposite the school. Something seemed off about the place. It was almost as if it had a shadow looming around it.

It was more of a mansion than a house, but it looked odd compared to the cute little town. It stood out like a crow with a hundred parrots. Parker cocked her head in curiosity at it. Something seemed to be drawing her attention to it. The mysterious building almost seemed whispering, dancing in the dark, inviting her to see what was under its roof. "Parker?" Matthew's voice snapped her out of the strange trance. Her head felt dizzy, almost as if something had dropped her brain. "Are you alright?" Matthew inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"I've never seen that house before. Who lives there" Parker questioned as she pointed over to the mansion. Matthew's eyes followed the direction that Parker pointed in, and she watched as his face turned into a frown. He didn't look cheerful or happy anymore. Parker felt a chill run down her spine. Something wasn't right.

"No one lives there anymore. People call it the Crow Forest house," Matthew responded almost hesitantly. He sounded almost scared. "The Crow Forest house?" Parker repeated, her eyes glued on the building. "There's a small story that goes with that place", Matthew hesitated. Biting his lip. "What about?" Parker asked, turning to face him.

"Crow forest house searching for lost souls. It seeks and haunts. Run if you hear it call. Then, for once, you go inside. Tell your loved ones goodbye, for crow forest house is unleavable and to exit is unachievable. They say it was a curse from centuries ago, but no one knows. Unbroken, and no one can go inside unless you are called, then you should go run and hide," Matthew finished, still staring Parker dead in the eye.

Matthew started to twitch almost as if he were a puppet on strings being pulled away. He winced almost in pain. "Geez... How long did it take to learn that one?" Parker snorted, rolling her eyes at the silly poem. "It's something all of us learned as kids from our parents. "Sounds like your parents just wanted you to be obedient" Parker laughed. "Look, my mother used to tell me stories like that all the time. It is honestly silly to believe in such things" Parker huffed.