The Caged Bird | ROTG

EIGHT

⚜️

Oh little bird,
Of course dreams come true,
But so are nightmares.

The minute you crossed over to Pennsylvania, your body stiffened and you started to shake. It was another few minutes to Burgess, your birth town, but you couldn't help but imagine what happened. Memories of your childhood flooded back and you stared at the familiar scenery. It was unnervingly beautiful. Soon enough, you reached the town of Burgess and you carefully navigated to your old home. Not that you would even call it home. Emerson tensed and made a disapproving hiss as you cut the engines. But you remained inside, almost paralyzed to step outside.

"Can I do it?" You asked yourself. Your leg started to bounce and you fiddled with the wheel, moving it back and forth. "I don't think I can do it......what was I thinking? I need some fresh air." You wrapped Emerson and started heading to the small forest. A few leaves were barely holding on t the branches but a few fell on the ground, and you couldn't help but step on each leaf as you walked. You stared at the scene of Burgess, not as impressive as the city but you were still amazed.

"Looks kind of pretty don't you-" you hadn't watched where you were going and ended up falling into a hole. "Ahhh!" You hissed as you crashed on rocky ground.

"That is a hazard. Someone should really close that hole." You groaned. You made sure Emerson was still around your neck, but she was a bit too tight. "Em, I'm choking here." You coughed. Her grip loosened and you inhaled and slowly stood up. You stared at the hole from which you entered and glanced around. Strangely, it wasn't as dark as you expected and there was a certain spot that emitted light, so naturally, you went towards it. The area was big, almost as big as as the forest.

"Was there always something under Burgess?" You questioned. "This place looks.....clean. Umm, someone definitely lives down here." You turned around to leave, only to find something blocking your path. Millions of ghost-like figures writhing angrily and you stepped back. Your heart started pounding and your hands started to shake. A familiar yet unwelcoming sensation.

"Who are you?" They all hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"Just leaving, thanks." You claimed and tried to push past them, but they didn't budge. "I'll forget you ever existed, I promise."

"Not good enough." They howled and grabbed your arms and legs, lifting you up and carrying you away.

"Hey! Sorry for trespassing but I fell in!" You shouted. There was no point in fighting so you stayed still until they placed you next to some golden globe statue. You studied it, the globe was littered with lights and it illuminated a majority of the underground terrain. The crowd of angry ghosts left and you contemplated if you could make it to the exit, but you doubted. Those things would catch me the minute I ran, so you stayed put.

"What is so urgent?" An annoyed voice growled.

"Master! Someone has entered your lair! She can see us!" The angry ghosts said. A tall man with spiked black hair entered the premises, but he looked pissed. He immediately took notice of you and stopped in his tracks.

"Please don't kill me! I fell in." You pleaded. The man scoffed.

"I'm not going to kill you."

"You're not? Um....I'm sorry, not to be rude or anything but why are you living under Burgess? Cause generally people who live underground are psychopaths or serial killers......and that's on assumption."

"This isn't Burgess. It's Venice."

"Venice? I just fell from Burgess."

"This place has many entrances and exits, Burgess is one of them. But this overall underground terrain is under Venice." He informed. "And I assure you, I'm not going to harm you.....and I'm not a serial killer or a psychopath." He was genuine and you could see it in his eyes. He offered you his hand and you took it, pulling you up from the ground.

"Thank you." You smiled sheepishly. "If it doesn't offend you.....why are you living underground?" Is that offensive to ask someone? Probably. Wow good job [Y/N], just offended the first person you come into contact with. Can I take back a question? The angry ghosts snarled at your question but the man raised his hand, which ultimately silenced them.

"I'm not exactly visible. If I were to attempt to buy a socially acceptable resident.....the people would walk through me. Literally."

"But I can see you."

"Another peculiar thing." He studied you. "That might be a different matter....I'm sure you have to be somewhere."

"You could say that."

"I also have business to attend to.....My Fearlings will drop you off where you need to be." He gestured to his angry ghost friends.

"No offense, sir......I think they might literally drop me." You chuckled nervously while the Fearlings cackled. "I'll climb out by myself."

"Nonsense." He scoffed. "Hmm, I can understand your distrust in my Fearlings. They aren't a polite bunch with a few exceptions.....perhaps I'll send you away via shadow. Where did you say you came from? The forest?"

"Yes sir."

"You don't have to be so polite." You watched him point to a corner of the lair and a few of his ghost friends broke from the group and darkened the corner. "Just walk into there and you'll find yourself in the forest in no time."

"Okay.....thank you?"

"Don't mention it." He then stared at your neck, tilting his head. "You have a snake." He stated, but you could sense a tone of surprise and amusement.

"Oh! Yeah, this is Emerson." You moved strands of your hair to show him your snake. "And I'm [Y/N] [L/N]."

"Pleased to meet you, [Y/N]. I'm Pitch Black."

"It was nice to meet you." You turned around hesitantly and walked towards the wall of darkness. A bit curious, you put your hand in. Instead of hitting the wall, it went through. "This is a dream and you're about to wake up." You muttered to yourself and without looking back, you walked in.