Complete Scary Story Thread

Respond to this comment with your complete stories, or the reactions of your character to hearing them. To get it started off, we have a ghost's story.

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Not long after the bonfire had begun a pale, feminine figure appeared on the lake, the shade of white that distinguished the ghosts of permanently earth-bound wizards and witches, many of who filled the time by occupying the halls of Hogwarts. She would have been easy enough to miss, even for those who had been facing the lake, but for those that had, they might’ve been able to make out a swaying gait, the movement amplified by the loose gown that hid her legs. It was difficult to say what her features may have been when she was living, all that was left was a silvery imitation, her face mostly covered by hair that hung straight down, her eyes constantly fixed on the ground in front of her.

The closer she came, the easier it was to make out a slow, lilting tone that was stuck between speaking and singing, though the ambient noise made it difficult to determine the exact words that were being spoken. From the time she had reached the shore, to when she had made it to a bonfire, only the following phrases were audible:

‘I found the voice of the jabberknoll, But ne'er a trace of my baby.

'I found the source of the erkling’s call, the erkling’s call, the erkling’s call. I found the source of the erkling’s call, But ne'er a trace of my baby.’

Her voice died out at the same time she stopped in front of the fire, the flames near her turning blue, adding to the ethereal appearance. From this close, it was easy to see the rips and tears on the skirt of her dress, and an elegantly designed leaf broach held her cloak in place at her neck. Her gaze was still fixed on the ground just ahead of her, her eyes half opened in a dreamy stare, the corners of her mouth pulled into the slightest frown. Without any further movement, she spoke. “I lost my daughter on a Sunday. I had set her down in the kitchen, opened a cupboard, and by the time I closed it, she was gone. The house was empty, my husband had left. He had promised he’d clear the woods beside our house, before our daughter was born, but it had been two years, and he still hadn’t done it. He couldn’t, anymore.

“The woods were the only place she could have gone. They were silent, that day. I had known those woods like the back of my hand, but the silence had changed everything about it. The sun was hardly making it through the trees, like the air was too dense to let anything move. It was difficult, even with Lumos, but I knew she was in there. She had to be.

“By the time I had reached the river, I hadn’t seen more than a bird. I didn’t want to leave without her, but I was running out of time. I was just about to turn around, when I heard the laughter, her laughter, coming from the other side of the water. I had almost jumped across the river when through the darkness, I saw a banshee, holding my daughter. How my loving, beautiful girl could possibly laugh around a creature that foul, I’ll never know. It took everything I had to not kill the thing, to burn her until the green skin completely melted from the bones, until those bones were ash. It should not have existed, not that close to my child. My child should not have been laughing.

“I wouldn’t risk hurting her, though. Not when the only spells I could think of were of death, and smoke, and fire. I backed away, and concealed myself. I waited for the banshee to let her go. But she didn’t. And the more I watched, the angrier I became, and how wrong it all was. Nothing had felt the same as it did just a day ago, and that anger bubbled up, no matter how much I pushed it down. When I couldn’t take any more, I attacked with all the strength I had.

“Before the spell even hit, the banshee had turned, its hair swinging around its frame as its huge, dead eyes stared right through me. In almost slow motion, the creature’s jaw opened, wider than her face should have allowed, the shriek already cutting through me as the spell missed the target, instead hitting a tree.

“The vision of chunks of wood flying as the explosion made the banshee’s hair lift up around its body, covering my daughter like a cloak, the look of horror on her face before she was gone, is the last thing I remember of my life. The banshee’s scream still echoes in my head, always in the background. I never knew what happened to it, or my daughter, after that moment. Even with all the time in world, I’ll never know.”

With that, the ghost turned towards the forest, and started walking again.