A little Halloween story!

Happy Halloween, readers! I wrote this piece titled, Willow's Hue in celebration of my second favorite holiday (Christmas and 4th of July are tied for first). Enjoy!

Willow's Hue
By S.J. Sylvis
Copyright © by S.J. Sylvis

            The day started off normal. When I woke up that morning, I looked out the tiny window beside my bed and took in the view. There was a greyish hue to the sky, and it was especially fitting for how I was I feeling. I would describe it just as the color poured into my windows…grey. I was grey. I wasn’t happy or sad, I wasn’t white or black…I was that in-between feeling. That muddled grey feeling. My parents weren’t the best parents in the world, but I’m sure they weren’t the worst either. They didn’t beat me and they fed me…most of the time, but really their main focus in life was their hatred for each other.

The night before, I was normal, well semi-normal. Never really clicking with anyone, and being called a freak on the daily at school, but I wasn’t really abnormal. I was just normal in my own way. My parents picked me up from the school because I got caught. I got caught spray painting the inside of the gymnasium…big deal. I wasn’t the only one who did it. But apparently, I was the only one who did it after hours, in the middle of the night. I thought I covered my bases, but the janitor seemingly lives in the school, who woulda thought? Anyway, I disrupted his sleep with the shaking of my blue spray paint can and BOOM, just like that my parents were being called and I was being hauled off into their car near midnight.

My parents didn’t even say a word to me as I climbed into the backseat of our Jeep Cherokee, once again, they were focused on each other and whatever their fight was about.  I tuned them out the second I slung the black seat belt over my body. I briefly remember my mother’s high-pitched voice threatening to climb out of the car ‘this very second!’, as she unbuckled her seat belt. I looked at my father’s expression, wondering what he’d say or do and I could have sworn I saw a black ora form around his entire body when he directed himself toward her. I couldn’t decide if my eyes were playing tricks on me because it was raining so harshly outside and the only light I could see through the windshield was one flickering street lamp, and not to mention the car was basically pitch black, except for the tiny blue glowing lights from the dash board but I still couldn’t decide if I was viewing something abnormal or if my eyes truly were playing tricks on me. I didn’t have a chance to decide as our car rapidly went spinning on the slick blacktop. I felt as if we all froze, right there in that very second when my father lost control. The outside was spinning, blurring raindrops against the window, the car was silent and the only thing I could hear was my own voice inside my head. I wasn’t afraid, I was nothing. I felt nothing as we crashed, then everything went black.

I was told both of my parents died, later that night in the sterile-smelling hospital. The lights were so bright that I had to shield my eyes when the doctor told me the news. The doctor and nurses who were gathered around my bed were awaiting my hysterical screams and sob as I heard the news, but nothing came. I was confused more than anything. I was confused at my lack of feelings. I should have been sad, maybe sobbing, or at least crying a little. But nothing came. The doctor mumbled words like shocked, disoriented, and so on but I wasn’t in shock, I just felt weird. My limbs felt heavy, my fingertips were tingling, and I felt a sudden surge of energy inside my chest; it was like I was morphing into something strange, something different.

After a long night of beeping machines, prodding doctors and nurses and a psych evaluation, I was able to go home. I fell into a deep slumber the second my head hit the pillow. I had a strange dream about rain and the whirling of the wind and then when I pried my eyes open that next morning, I remembered what had happened. I still felt strange, not sad or happy, just neutral.

I climbed out of bed slowly, allowing my bare feet to touch the coldness of the concrete floor. I walked my way to the bathroom and took a peek in the mirror. I felt different, so maybe I look different too. When I reach my own reflection, my eyebrows dipped in-ward and I was finally feeling something other than ‘different’. Now, I was in shock. I squeezed my eyes shut quickly, then opened them up again but they were still violet. My eyes were glowing, and they were a light shade of violet. I took my fingers and pulled my cheeks down, revealing the bright white color around my now violet eyes and I mumbled, ‘What the—”, before someone from behind me spoke up.

“Violet…interesting.” I spun around so fast I knocked over all the continents on the bathroom counter. My toothbrush landed on top of my foot and everything else came crashing to the floor with a loud bang.

“Who the hell are you?!” I squealed, staring at a guy in my bathroom doorway. He was attractive, but in a weird way. He had jet black hair that stuck up in all sorts of different directions and his eyes, they were a bright teal. I tilted my head when I reached the blueish-green color and I felt like I was swimming.

“I’m Reed, and I’m here to retrieve you.” I shut my eyes again, hoping this is was still part of an extremely odd dream but when my eyes sprung open again, he was still standing there with a smug expression on his face.

“Retrieve me?”

“Yes, to retrieve you.” He backs up and gestures for me to leave the bathroom with him but it feels like my feet are cemented into the floor. I make sure my feet can still move by wiggling my toes in the white, fuzzy rug.  Yep, they’re still alive and moving.

“I’m not going anywhere with you! I don’t know you…”

His smile widens, “Oh, are you a big believer of ‘stranger danger’?” He chuckles and my face floods with heat.

“Can you let me know why you’re inside my house? And why the hell my eyes have suddenly changed to violet?” I feel like I’m in the twilight zone. For the moment the car spun, something shifted in the air.

His face grows serious. “Oh yeah, I’m supposed to read this to you.” He pulls out a piece of parchment from his back pocket. “I just really like messing with newbies, it’s literally the highlight of my job.” Confusion stirs inside of me as he begins to read from the paper.

“On behalf of the Common Place of Witches of the Subhurst district, we are here to retrieve you, Willow Alexandrea Hopkins, a now orphan of Hope and Crest Hopkins, to the Common Place school of Witchery. Blah, blah, blah.” Reed puts the piece of parchment back in his pocket and looks up at me. “The rest if boring and unimportant. You ready to go?”

I stand there with what I’m sure is the most vacant expression lacing my face. What in the actual hell is going on.

“Are you messing with me? What sick person comes here the day after my parents die and messes with me?” I look around this kid with the teal eyes, and see if half of the school is awaiting my reaction. They’re probably all holding in their snickers as I try to wrap my head around what is going on.

“I’m not messing with you, Willow. Normally witches don’t come to the facility until they’re eighteen but considering….” He actually looks remorseful with hurt swarming in his teal eyes, “but considering you are now parentless, they’re making an expectation, plus…you’ve apparently hit your witches mark since your eyes are their proper color now.”

I quickly turn around and take in my eye color again. They’re still a pinkish-purple color and they almost seem as if they’re glowing.

“But…how?” I can’t even form the words. If I say it aloud, then that likely means I’ve lost my ever-loving mind and I’ve accepted that I’m somehow a witch.

“Let’s go. They’ll explain everything when we get there.” He walks forward to grab my arm but I retreat backwards, into the old fashioned bathtub.

“Where ya gonna go Willow? There’s no way out of here but with me.”

“I’m not a witch and I suggest you get the hell out of my house. Now!” I yelled, and he only chuckled in my direction.

I took in his posture again as he rolled his eyes. He seems nonchalant and completely at ease, like he tells a girl she’s a witch and tries to drag her to some unknown place on the daily.

“I do actually.” I whip my head at his.

“Did you…did you just read my mind?” I can feel my eyes getting wider as I speak. What the hell.

“Yes, and thank you. I think you’re attractive too.” Oh my God. My entire body feels hot with embarrassment and the energy surge I felt in my body last night, is reappearing.

“Okay, now. Take it easy Willow.” He eyes my fingertips and I look down and see purple sparks sparkling at the tip.

“Oh my God!” I clench my fists and suddenly wish it was last night again, so I could feel nothing. Nothing at all.

“Okay, just relax.” I meet his eyes again and they’re full of worry. He quickly reaches into the inside of his jacket and mumbles something under his breath and I’m met with an orange-ish and yellow dust that flies into my face.

“What the hell!” I say, but it comes out slurred and much slower than I met. The next thing I know, Reed is reaching over the bathtub and catching me in his arms. Momentarily, I feel safe and calm until I’m whooshed away into an alternate world full of witches and dark creatures.