#dark!halsin

You moved into this house recently. Old and grim, on the outskirts of the town, at the edge of the woods, your new home was covered with crooked dry lianas, as if forest tried to swallow it back into the wild. The house was suspiciously cheap, even considering all the disadvantages of such acquisition. You expected problems with wiring, plumbing, heating and ghosts. But, surprisingly, everything was fine.

The only thing that bothered you were HEAVY and massive doors and outer window shutters, as if the previous owners were ready for the medieval siege. They were closed so tightly, that the air in the house felt stale, like if you lived in a corked bottle. You were looking forward to the warmth of spring to ventilate the whole house properly and throw out all the junk.

Despite the difficulties of living far from the town, you enjoyed being at one with the local nature. There were always some small animals scurrying around - tits, jays, squirrels. A flock of crows lived nearby the driveway of your house, and you always offer them some food. In return, they loudly warned you when moose came out of the woods - you immediately rushed to windows and stared at them with delight, wisely not daring to come closer to them.

At the first opportunity, you bought a portable camera and several bags of seeds. Going further into the forest, you attached the camera to a tree, and from time to time you dumped food - corn, seeds, peanuts. You had your own personal Discovery Channel. Raccoons, deer, and a huge number of birds enjoyed the gifts. You were surprised to learn how violently the squirrels scared off all competitors, avoiding a fight only maybe with deer. Little greedy fluffs.

You were happy with your quiet life and the isolation from the town. Even in days, when the forest suddenly fell silent, as if everything was holding its breath, and you froze too, even then, everything quickly returned to normal, and lively birdsongs could be heard again. There must have been a large predator walking through the forest at such moments, like a bear or a wolf. Or lynx. Cougar? Maybe even wolverine. You had two bear pepper sprays at home and in your car, it calmed you.

Moreover, there was a special booth in the middle of the road, since late 50s, where worked an old wired emergency phone and you could locked yourself inside, hiding from the beast or the storm. Everything was planned long before you.

---

You got out of the car, cheerfully slamming the door and taking a deep breath of cool air. Just a little more, and spring will come. The days were already lighter and lighter. You pulled a new bag of seeds out of the car, loudly grunting and humming, and headed deeper into the forest. You’ve always tried to make as much noise as possible, so animals could hear you and run away. It’s better to admire them on the screen than risk a potential fight (the squirrels really impressed you). Besides the bag, you were also carrying a backpack with new camera. Something... strange happened to the old one. You didn’t believe in urban legends and local folklore, but the last record was pretty close to that.

The night footage was the same as ever - flying squirrels and raccoons quietly enjoying their snack, later a pair of deer joined them. Then suddenly all of the animals raised their heads, froze for a moment and abruptly sped off in different directions. Strangely, it was utterly quiet. No bear growling or wolf whining, just silence. Then your camera stopped working with a loud crunch.

It probably just fell. After happily stomping on the dry branches, you finally reached your usual spot and froze. Oh God.

The camera didn’t fall. It was dented into a tree, flattened into a plastic pancake. Looking around, you came closer, carefully removing it from the tree. Holly molly. It seemed crushed with one strike. Was it a moose? Twirling the dead device in your hands, you put it into a bag, and took out a new one, almost a copy of the previous one.

Hopefully, this one would last longer. You really enjoyed watching your wild neighbors, so you carefully set the new camera, attaching it tightly to the tree, this time hiding it under a branch.

«What are you doing?» 

You shrieked and jumped with your whole body, almost hitting your head on a branch. While you were frantically turning around, your mind has already realized that it was just a man’s voice, just a man, maybe some nature lover like you, or maybe a ranger, or a neighbor... Dear God, you would prefer a bear.

Oh wow!

The stranger was... Impressive. Huge, with loose shoulder-length hair, wearing old-fashioned leather clothes. He glared at you, and the sunbeam sharpened his face, as if it was carved from stone.

«I-I’m just filming the wild…»

The stranger frowned at you, and then turned his gaze to the bag with food.

«Do you feed the animals?»

«Um, yes, I bring seeds, nuts, and stuff like that.»

«Hmm…» The stranger looked at you again, and then at the bag. Such piercing eyes, you didn’t even think, as your mouth was already answering questions.

«Show me.»

«Er… Yes, of course.» You opened the bag and buried your hand in the seeds, showing a handful to a stranger.

«These are pumpkin seeds. They are good, especially for deer»

The man stared at your hand for a while, and then looked at the camera.

«This thing... Does it show you animals?»

«Yes, it’s a portable camera. I pour out the food here, and then I watch the video of them eating... I like it. Sort of a hobby... Em... And what do you like to do?»

«I...» His face changed slightly, and he straightened up a little. «Whittling.»

«Wow! I can’t do anything with my hands, I tried knitting many times, but didn’t have enough patience, and one day I fell asleep over a mosaic...» Ah, here we go. You always babbled when you felt awkward.

The stranger humphed and tilted his head slightly. His face relaxed, and his eyes became a little softer. How old he was, you wondered. You couldn’t tell. Maybe over 30, maybe under 50. Such an elegant face, but so harsh at the same time.

«I am Halsin. May I have your name?»

You introduced yourself. Well, that’s a start.

«Do you live nearby?»

«No. My duty is here.» Ranger, of course. No wonder you started reporting right away, like a schoolgirl.  Or maybe he is a forester. Old school one, with leather clothing, log house... You bet he has some pickup truck and a shotgun.

«I see... Well, I have to go now. I’ll scatter the seeds and leave, if you don't mind.»

Halsin bowed his head and smirked.

«I don't mind. And you, won't mind if I visit you?»

«Sure, come in anytime!» you answered, while scattering the seeds, but as soon as you straightened up, no one was around. Yep, an old school. Less words, more action. Well, good for you, it really was time for you to return and go to work.

The day passed quickly, and you were looking forward to a relaxing vacation at home with your new wildlife footage. Maybe you could see the mysterious Halsin, if he was caught on camera... You turned the key, but instead of the usual grumble of the engine, you heard nothing. Oh God dammit!

The car repair shop was across the street, and you quickly arranged for repair. Nothing serious, but you had to ask your colleague to give you a ride. She stopped at the general crossroad, and you had to walk the rest of the way. Not so far, but it was already dark outside. Although, everything was calm. The emergency booth was right in the middle of your path, and the snow glowed brightly under the moon, lighting everything around.

You slowly walked home, breathing deeply and steady. Still, living far from the city has its advantages. So calm. Peaceful. The only sound was the snow crunching and the rattling of your key holder... What was that? You stopped. Here it was again. A whistling? You turned around. Yes, whistling. One long sad note. What could make such a sound? Definitely not a bird. How strange. A bottle? Again. Hmm. You whistled back. Silence. Total silence. You shivered and hurried home, accompanied by sound of your own heart beating. Later, locking the heavy door behind you and pouring hot tea, you allowed yourself to relax. What a day. Alas, Halsin was not in the video.

---

The morning was grey and cloudy. You had to get up early to walk back to the crossroad and catch your colleague's car. With a sigh, you opened your door, and immediately stopped. They were footprints in the snow. A bear? You squinted. Yes, it looked like a bear, but... The foot is too long. Human? No, it can't be. Who in their right mind would walk barefoot in the snow, and even stand under the door and... Windows... They were everywhere. Some were quite strange, as if one leg had been twisted backwards. You were hesitant for a moment, observing the chain of footprints - they led into the forest. You decided to follow them a little, you had time, and the sun began to illuminate everything.

As you walked forward, you couldn't stop being amazed. Bear footprints were replaced by deer tracks, then they looked like cat’s, but then it was clearly a large bird, like an eagle. And that was a bunny. Did you miss a large animal romp? How soundly did you sleep? But it was quiet outside! After walking all the way to the forest, the footprints suddenly stopped, as if nothing had ever happened. Strange.

Catching yourself, you hurried to the crossroad. Nature sometimes brings surprises.

And the next day showed how right you were! The sun was shining so warmly, that the snow began to melt rapidly, and by noon the wet ground had appeared. You were thrilled. Finally! You could open the windows and throw away the old junk from the previous owners. Some kind of jars, expired canned food, twenty years old medicines, dried toothpastes and boxes of stinky cracked soap, not to mention a whole stocks of moldy biscuits. Dear lord, were people here waiting for the apocalypse or something? All went into the dumpster.

You vigorously threw away everything useless, while humming and singing to the music in your headphones.

«Come with me into the trees, we'll lay on the grass and let the hours pass» Hah, Depeche Mode - Stripped. Pity, but you had no one to strip in front of.

There were bunches of garlic, rosehip and thistle hanging from the hall ceiling, all dusty and lost their aroma. Trash.

«Take my hand, come back to the land, let's get away, just for one day»

Why was it necessary to drive such long nails over the windows? There were thick as your pinky! Strange decor. It probably had its old purpose. You resolutely pulled out each one with a claw hammer.

«Let me see you stripped down to the bone»

After clearing the storage and hall you headed to the basement, but after seeing a huge amount of various metal junk, you decided to do it later. Why would anyone want to store SO many forged fences, fireplace pokers, pitchforks and plain iron rods? They all were terribly heavy, cold, and covered in dust. Later.

That was enough for today. You greeted the setting sun with a tired sigh and closed the heavy shutters with regret. However, you decided to leave the hallway window open. It was warm enough, and it was the second floor. Just some more fresh air, please.

After finishing your productive day with a great dinner and a new episode of your personal Discovery channel, you went to sleep. The bed was especially soft that night. The blanket gently but firmly was wrapped around you. The bedspread felt like velvet, or soft, oh so soft fur. The pillow pressed your neck like a lover's lips. So warm, so good. Blanket was holding you, rocking you back and front, with a measured movement of your breathing. Like on a cloud.

The pure comfort enveloped you harder and harder, the blanket tightened around your stomach, pulling you somewhere. The woody vines were wrapped around you, they sprouted inside your flesh, but not to consume you, but for sharing their sap, you felt whole, as if you had returned to the place where everyone were before their birth. Into the soil. You felt how you were sliding down into warmth, into silence, into BAMMMMOH MY GOD

You almost fell out of bed when you jumped up abruptly from a loud bang. There was a buzzing in your ears, you haven't woken up properly, as you turned on the light. Did something fall, did a bird crash into the window? Window! The damn window! Fuck. You immediately ran out into the hallway and shivered from the cold. Fuck.

The shutter slammed once more in the wind, as you reached to close it. Snow flew in the air, covering the ground again. It was the end of the good weather. The lovely warm day left only memories.

It was quiet, the heavy silence pressed on your ears. Then you froze. Was it... Was it a whisper? Instantly remembering about the strange footprints, you choked in horror. Someone was outside! You swallowed, and peered out a little, scrutinizing into the darkness. It was like someone's endless exhale without pauses or inhales. Was it just your imagination, or was it getting closer?

Clutching the windowsill and bending even lower, you screeched and almost grabbed the owl that flew up in front of your face. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST ON A BICYCLE WITHOUT A SADDLE. Snapping the shutters shut, you were laughing almost hysterically. Enough of nature for today.

---

The morning «pleased» you with the returning of winter: snow, cold air and a whirling wind. You decided to spend the rest of the weekend at home, cleaning up everything you could. Finally, with some more junk in the trash bags, you opened the front door with a tired huffing and immediately noticed a bright spot on the fresh snow. What was it? Curiously leaning closer, you were surprised to see a branch with large berries, a bunch of amber pebbles and beautiful blue feathers. Wow! Squeezing the pebbles, you were amazed at how warm they were. They almost glowed in the cold gray twilight.

With a smile, you brought your boons home. You knew what it was. Crows! They hadn't been seen at all lately, which was strange, they typically occupied some territory and didn't leave it. The usual greeting croaks have been gone for the last week. And finally - a good sign! You should thank them later with nuts. But where these berries were found, that was the mystery. And why didn't they eat it themselves?

You brought the branch to your nose and inhaled the scent deeply. Ah! What a miracle. You couldn't even find a comparison - mint, vanilla, notes of lavender. Astounding! Of course you didn't eat them, it was better to keep them as a memento.

When you finished cleaning, you looked around the gloomy and snowy area. Yep. Dinner and a full relax in front of the TV. Dusting off your hands, you finally returned to the house and locked the door.   

Outside was dead silent.

---

Hmmmwwhatt, wha-? Eeoohh-uumpff! You almost fell off the couch, got up, and nearly fell over the pillow again. The TV was desperately trying to show the late news, but the signal was too low and the image was lagging. Turning it off, you realized that you had fallen asleep in your living room. What time was it? 3 a.m. Damn. What the..? It was snow storm outside. God, what a strong wind. You needed to turn everything off and go to bed...

Knock.

Probably something tore off outside and...

Knock knock knock

The front door. Who could come to you at this time? You checked your smartphone. Nothing, no calls no messages.

Knock knock knock

Frightened, you tiptoed closer to the door, grabbing the bear pepper spray from the hall table. Damn, not this. The taser, where was the taser... Here!

Okay. You swallowed, and looked through the door peephole. You couldn't see anything.

Knock. Knock. Knock. The door frame slightly vibrated.

«...»

W-what? Was that your name? You were glued to the peephole again. A massive dark figure slowly moved away from the door, like a dark ocean wave.

Long hair glistened in the moonlight, and the stranger's eyes looked straight at you. Halsin?! What was going on…

«Halsin, is that you?»

«...»

The lights went off. Oh god, oh god, oh my god. You felt how your ears plugged from panic. Through the dull hum, you heard a deep male voice calling your name.

«I'm sorry if I startled you. Will you let me in? There's a storm outside»

The snow storm. Jesus, of course, he was probably checking the neighborhood and something happened. Your mind steadied and you pulled yourself together.

 «Y-yes, of course.» You unlocked the door and opened it with great effort. Damn, you needed to replace it, it was too hard to open.

Halsin towered over you like a grizzly standing upright, wearing his leather gear, small braids were hiding in his mane. His eyes seemed large and dark, like black pebbles.

«Halsin, are you okay, is something wrong? It's such a terrible storm, God, there's no electricity, I just woke up. Your car broke down, right? We can try calling a tow truck driver.» You were talking non-stop, mindlessly turning on and off the light switch in the hallway.

Halsin said nothing, looking at you with a soft smile, slightly tilting his head. You fell silent in embarrassment, unable to look away from his dark eyes, when you finally caught yourself and stepped aside.

«Oh, please come inside.»

The man entered, bowing his head to avoid bumping into the doorway. Sweet lord, he was as tall as a moose! And just as graceful. Would you look at those legs! You closed the door, hiding your reddish face.

When you turned back to your guest, the electricity suddenly returned, and the light almost blinded you.

«Ouch!» You covered your eyes and blinked. Finally, you could took a closer look at Halsin, who was standing calmly in your hallway, as if there was nothing unusual about the situation. He was probably used to inspect his district and often visited the neighbors.

«Please come to the kitchen, I'll pour us some tea while we have the power.» Halsin nodded and moved where you pointed. Oh my god. He walked like a model, so.. Weightless. Impressive for such a beefcake! Focus. Tea.

Fortunately, you had some cookies to proudly place in front of your guest (you usually just nibbled on chips). Both of you were sitting at the kitchen table, while you were doing everything you could to make a decent impression, which was quite difficult - five minutes ago you thought you were about to be slaughtered by some maniac.

While the kettle was heating, you called the tow truck, but he was busy (predictably, such a late hour and such bad weather), so you filled the awkward silence with your chatter while Halsin warmed his hands holding the cup. He didn't touch any food and just listened to you, tilting his head to the side and slightly smiling. You liked how his stern face seemed softer in the kitchen light.

«...it's all so unexpected, but I'm glad you visited me.»

«Would you like to visit my place in return?» He asked suddenly, with his deep, breathy voice.

Whoa!

«Um... Yes, of course, I would love that.»

Suddenly, the power went off again. Kitchen went dark. The hum of the refrigerator, the little lights of the kitchen devices - all that comforting noise just stopped, leaving you to hear the eerie howl of the wind. Something loudly cracked outside.

Halsin took your hand, and you gratefully squeezed his in return.

Then the smartphone buzzed, its screen illuminated your face. It was the tow truck driver.

«Yes? Oh, you're free, wonderful, we...» Halsin snatched your smartphone out of your hands. Hmm, probably he was going to tell everything himself, it were more reasonable.. Wh-what?!

He crushed the smartphone in his hand, crumpled it up like a piece of paper.

«Halsin? Wh-what are you doing?!» You froze, not quite believing what you just saw.

«Come.»

«What?» You recoiled, but he held your hand too tightly. You tried to free yourself but without any success, as if a liana was wrapped around your arm.

«Halsin, let me go!» You raised your head and gasped in horror - his eyes were glowing yellow.

«Come with me.»

«Wwhat, what are talking about?!» Terrified, you lost your voice and could only whisper.

«You gave me your name, answered my call, followed my steps, accepted my gift, you let me in and agreed to come. You are mine now.» His voice, he spoke without pauses for inhale or exhale. He was getting closer.

Taser! The taser was in your cardigan pocket.

Still in  disbelief, you grabbed the taser and pressed it to Halsin's neck.

Blinding blue flashes danced in the darkness, you felt the smell of burning hair.

Halsin roared, it wasn't the voice of a man or a beast.

Somehow, you pulled your hand away and rushed into the hallway. Grabbing your jacket and yanking the door open, you ran outside.

The icy wind immediately burned you, but you just ran, pulling on your jacket, stumbling in your silly house shoes. The emergency booth, it has a heavy door, you could lock yourself in, and a phone, an old-fashioned phone, it worked without power, you just have to make it. Oh God please help

You slipped, but you stayed on your feet, you have never run so fast in your life. It was dark, the moon fled from this horror, and abandoned you. You heard howls, breathy whispers, screeching, but you didn't stop. The air around you was filled by snow crumbs, rushing in different directions, the light of the street lanterns barely made its way through the blizzard.

The emergency booth

It shone like a beacon in the middle of this chaos, the snow couldn't hide it.

Something was rushing from behind. Don't turn around, just run, please run

You glanced back and screamed in horror.

It was a THING. A twisted face, vaguely resembling a bear, IT was changing shape, as a black kaleidoscope. Feathers, beaks, claws. Your mind lost control of your body, you were an animal yourself, with one thought left: ESCAPE.

You howled and rushed forward with all your strength.

RUN RUN RUN RUN RUNRUN RUNRUNRUNRUNRUNRUNRUNR

It caught you.

«COME HERE»

The thing knocked you down, instantly enveloping you like eerie warm clay. You tried to fight, kicking with your feet, pushing with your hands. It swallowed your fingers, breaking your nails.

«ENOUGH OF THIS»

Halsin's face appeared right above you, a horrid, grotesque, but face. You hit his nose with your forehead as hard as you could and twisted around, trying to crawl away. You almost touched the door of the booth as you were yanked back by your legs.

You howled in despair.

No no no no please no NO GOD NOoooooooooo

The warm, moist darkness covered you completely, you felt sharp teeth on the nape of your neck. All your limbs seemed to lose their strength and hung helplessly. Your mind was clouded.

You felt how your body was turned over on its back. With a great effort you opened your eyes. Halsin. You couldn't do anything but watch as his face was getting closer. His hot mouth covered yours in a slow, possessive kiss, while his whole body was grasping you tighter and tighter. Something came out of his mouth and invaded your chest, sprouting inside you.

You were crucified with Halsin's grip and could only whimper. You watched how the black vortex of roots and vines filled the air, until tears blurred your vision, and you fell into the darkness.

You were dragging down... Surrendered to Halsin’s firm hold, basking in his warmth.