The Rose Garden Disaster Stalking Jahari and Beatrice Party Time Morning Services Anger Moving Day Short Who's Pregnant? Moving Day Elephant Jahari and Beatrice revised Stalking Noon and Midnight Moving Day revised Vermont Country Store Mary's Move Sarah and Jinny Sarah and Jinny part II Sarah and Jinny part III Sarah and Jinny part IV Am I Invisible? What am I? My Happy Phone Emerald Janet The Raven The Garage Passion FancyCat GamePro The End of My Summer is Coming Did You Say Something? Emerald: A Short Story Fireflies Nana The Fair George and Margaret Sally's Schooling Bad News Nostalgia Magic Maker Little Demonic Microwave TV vs. Parenting oo. . .Scary Falling Down My Play 1 Bio of a Mage My Play 2 Jahari and Beatrice, the Play My Play 2, scene 2 Here I Sit I am the Best My Baby Kitty The Great Green Frog Jedi Untitled 1 Wanderers Spook Here I Sit (revised) I am the Best (revised) Today it Snowed The Great Green Frog (revised) The Weather I Remeber I Remember (Pantoum Revision)

Homework

I walked along the logging trail that lead away from my parents' house. The night was dark. No moon and only the stars casting down thier feeble light. The air was heavy with the scent of autumn, the smell of decay filled my nose. Dead leaves slid across each other as I stepped on them, making a kind of shushing sound. I could hear crickets scratching on either side of the trail I walked upon. The trees I walked by were old, their branches sagging despite their shedding of heavy leaves. Limbs reached out to caress my face, feeling like the brush of skeletons' fingers.

A strong breeze kicked leaves up into my face and hair. Irritably I picked them away, but the breeze became stronger and blew my hair into my mouth. I tied it back away from my face into a tight knot. Suddenly, the breeze died. Completely and utterly, there wasn't even a wisp of air moving through the branches overhead. I shuddered and continued on my way.

The night felt like it was closing in on me, the trees had blocked out my view of the stars and the trail was becoming narrower. More branches reached out to snag my hair and catch my clothes, as though grasping to make me stop my forward march. Then the crickets stopped their song. The silence was deafening. I knew I was in the right place now.

With a shudder that wracked my spine, I looked to the right. There, under the hanging, leafless limbs. It was like They had said. "A small clearing that can never be found in the light of day." That is what They had whispered to me, but only in my dreams.

I turned toward it, feeling as though my heart was about to leap from my chest. I walked toward it, straining to hear any sounds. But I heard nothing, not even my own footsteps. All I could hear was the pounding of my own heart. When I got to the edge of the trail I saw a shadow flicker out of the corner of my eye. I turned right, seeing nothing at first. I studied the trail I had just walked, but could see nothing for the lack of light.

Suddenly there was a blinding light. I screamed and fell to the ground. I curled into a ball as my chest constricted painfully. I looked up beyond the light and saw....

NOTE: This was an assignment for my CCV Creative Writing II online class with William Noble.