The black cat twitched its tail twice. It hissed. Then with a twitch of its tail, nothing. The alley cat laid back down on the cobblestone wall. Curled up in a black ball of fuzz, and went back to sleep. Leaving me to the whispers of the night. Great.

     Sharp winds whistled by, cutting into every patch of bare skin it could reach. Numbing me to the bones. Every step I took as I continued to stalk off to my neighborhood resulted in a squish from the puddled roads and my soaked through socks. Followed by cracks and crunches from the fall leaves blown beneath my rubber soled boots.

      It was only the beginning of October and my town already looked ready to spook and scare all the kids that came through this Halloween. Not that it needed much preparation. The trees had no leaves, bare to the world with their bony like branches. Most of the houses were either broken down or abandoned years ago. Plus the people that were still living here looked like skeletons, just skin and bones and sunken in eyes. See through. I was used to it by now though, we all were. It was all we saw either in the mirror or just out our bedroom windows anyways. 

     As I walked I counted. I counted the petal less flower stems in Ms. Rayeths front lawn. The crows in the sky. The little children who hung to their parents hands pulling them along. The house numbers. All the way back to my house. 193. Right between the Lighs and Dess', and right across from the Links old house. Now left abandoned and empty. Just like other dozens of houses.

     It had been about a year since the accident but I still remember how it was before all this. The happy smiles, and joyful laughter. The color, the singing, the happiness. The people. 

    All that's left is hollow eyes and empty rooms in a black and white town, lined with grey. If you were to ask  me if I missed the way my town used to be I'd tell you it's all I know. These memories of times that may or may not have been are but figments of my imagination.Just memories. Nothing more. This is my home, this is my life. All I know. All I remember at least.

     "Blayde!" somewhere inside my dark house my mom called. Probably needing help with the laundry again. Sighing, I walked in, contemplating the witchs words in my head.

      But maybe, just maybe if I could. I'd change everything. Make it better, reverse time. Anything but this, but then again, it's not that bad, is it. Just a little different. Missing. Not now though, later. When it's time. When were ready, when the dead fade and live return, maybe. Just maybe.

-Emily Harrison