This story was actually from a project in my high school english class. I thought I would upload it since it came out well. This was also my teacher's favorite out of everyone else's :)

And the Red Moon Rises

By Yuri-esque

The forest was frigid and bleak. I stood beside a large oak, fallen leaves swirling about me. The colors, red, brown, yellow, orange, blurred past my eyes, obscuring my vision as I peered beyond them. The sun was setting, disappearing behind the vast tree line, causing the trees to cast obscure shadows onto the grassy floor.

Time never seemed to pass here. Everything always stayed the same. The leaves falling soundlessly onto the ground. The lonesome breeze that swept through the woods. The size of the elderly oak. It was peaceful here… and then she came.

I sat beneath my favorite tree, enjoying the light gusts of wind and the flurry of colors around me. I was oblivious to everything else, and jumped when I heard a soft crunch to my left. I turned my head, and immediately saw what didn't belong.

Standing a short distance away, wearing a snow white dress with complex designs and jewelry adorning her neck, wrists, and ears, was a girl. Her golden hair fell down around her shoulders, framing her porcelain-like face. Her mouth was turned upward at the corners in a small pleasant smile as her icy blue eyes watched me intently.

I stared at her with a startled expression. After all, of all the times I've been here, I've never came across another person.

She tilted her head slightly, the same smile on her pink lips. She opened her mouth and said, "Won't you come with me?"

I blinked rapidly. Her voice was soft and musical, but for an odd reason it sent shivers down my spine. I slowly got to my feet, all the while keeping our gazes' locked. "Where?" I asked simply, my voice full of confusion.

Her smile only seemed to grow wider. She turned on the spot and began to walk in the opposite direction.

"Wait!" I called after her. However, the princess-like girl showed no intention of stopping. I hesitated for a second, and then chased after her.

By time I had started to follow, she had already disappeared from my sight. I peered around hastily, looking for the bright ivory color of the extravagant dress, which greatly stood out from the darker colors of the forest. I walked until I was breathless, pausing to lean against a nearby tree.

Where could she have gone? I wondered, listening for any sounds that might have indicated she was nearby.

"Won't you come with me?" A voice said.

I turned my head, and the girl was there. She seemed amused, judging by her gleeful smile. She gestured to me to follow her, and, once again, she turned about and walked away.

I made sure to keep up with her this time, jogging up to her side and staying with her pace. As we trekked through the woods, I glanced at her and said, "Where are we going?"

Her eyes stayed glued forward as she replied, "Home."

I furrowed my eyebrows. Home? What does she mean by that? "We're going to your home?"

The girl shook her head, still not looking at me. "Not just my home."

"Who else lives there?" I pressed on.

She merely smiled, and continued walking on.

I frowned. Deciding to ask a different question, I asked, "Who are you? What's your name?"

She peered at me through the corner of her eye. "You will find out in due time."

I gave her a puzzled expression, but pushed on.

We came upon a large clearing and stopped. I glanced around for a moment, nothing out of the ordinary catching my eye.

"What's here?" I questioned, looking at my mysterious companion.

She said nothing, but pointed off to the side.

I looked, and gasped in astonishment. On an overhanging cliff, towering over the vast, endless ocean was an immense castle. It appeared black against the now dark sky, and gave off an ominous feeling.

As I gawked at the foreboding fortress, the girl began walking towards it.

"Wait!" I said, following after. "This is your home?"

She paused and looked back at me with her azure eyes. "Won't you come with me?" She asked for the umpteenth time.

I waited for her to turn and walk away, but this time she was waiting for an answer. "I will." I said. It was odd; I had only recently met this baffling girl, and yet I felt a need to do as she wished.

She smiled, and we strided forward. As we approached the building, the feeling of animosity grew stronger. I couldn't explain it, but the castle felt… evil.

We reached the castle in silence and we continued on inside. The large doors swung open on their own, slowly and eerily.

We ceased right inside of the door, and, again, on its own, closed. The girl stepped forward a few feet, and then said quietly, "We're home."

Her words resounded off the walls of the huge front room, making her voice echo.

I looked around uneasily, expecting us to be mobbed by people, but no one came. There was no sound whatsoever. "Were we expected?" I asked, her words confusing me. 'We're home'? Not 'I'm home'?

"Of course." She answered, giving me her charming smile. "They're waiting for us. Won't you come with me?"

Again, those words. Whenever she said them, I felt compelled to follow her.

She guided me up the carpeted staircase at the end of the room, and upon reaching the top, she led me down a wide corridor. The inside of the castle was as sinister as the outside it seemed. Everything seemed so dark. Not only that, but the antiques and suits of armor lining the hallway walls were rather dusty. It looked like someone hadn't lived here in hundreds of years.

We paused outside of a rotten-looking wooden door. The girl turned her blonde covered head to me and told me, "They're waiting behind this door."

From the way she was standing to the side, she must have wanted me to go in first. I stepped forward, took hold of the door's handle, and opened it. I hesitated.

Inside was pitch black. I couldn't see anything; not the floor or the walls. Nothing.

I looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. In return she gave me a smile. But her smile wasn't the sweet one she had given to me before. It was a predatory grin, stretching across her face, emphasizing her ice cold eyes.

I stumbled back, fear suddenly overwhelming me. She lurched forward, grasping my shirt front, and roughly shoved me through the doorway. I staggered, trying to regain my balance, but I couldn't. It was no wonder I couldn't see the floor in the dark room. There was no floor.

I shrieked as I plunged down into the dark depths of hell. Down, down… I would never see the light of day again.

I startled awake. It took a moment for me to regain the memories of what had happened, and once I had, I let out a gasp. How was it that I was alive? Or am I in fact dead right now?

I noticed that I was laying down on something hard. But it wasn't the floor. I tried to sit up, only to find that my hands were chained down. I glanced around, fear beginning to bubble up in my stomach.

I was inside a room. It was empty, except for the stone table that I laid upon. The floor and walls were made of stones, making me think I was in a dungeon. A single window filled the small room with light. The full moon was visible outside, tinted red.

A red moon…

"It's a fitting sight, is it not?" A voice said from the shadows.

Stepping out of the dark was the girl. She had discarded her white dress for a deathly black one, and her eyes, once icy blue, was now a bloody crimson. A sharp, jeweled dagger was clutched in her hand, faintly shining in the moonlight.

"It is a fine night…" She continued, staring at me with wide eyes and a wolfish grin.

"W-What are you–?!" I choked out, but she hushed me with a finger.

"Shush, my beloved." She cooed. "Tonight, we will finally be together at last…" She raised the dagger and traced its tip on my cheek.

My heart was pounding uncontrollably, threatening to explode in my chest. "B-But if you kill me, we'll never be together!" I shouted.

She giggled; a cold, heartless sound. "You don't seem to understand, my beloved…" I gaped in horror as the flesh on her face began to rot and fall away, leaving nothing but an ugly, grinning skeleton. The jaw fell open and a shrill sound came out. "…I'm already dead."

I screamed as the dagger came plunging down, down, down…

And the red moon rose higher into the starlit sky.

End.

Please review :) It would make me oh so happy :D