When the Clock strikes Twelve
For it was a cold late night in Equestria, The beautiful pale moon shimmered on the waters of a small pond. Near this small pond was a house, The house was located away from a small village, Inside the house slept a little filly named Wick. The wind blew her window open with great force, Wick jolted awake to the sound of the window being opened at such speed.
She looked around scared at first and then with tired eyes she sighs...
"Why does the wind always have to punch open my window?" She said with a tired voice. She closed the window with her magic and locked it again, After closing her window the little filly lay'ed down to continue her slumber. "Wake up" A faint whisper was heard the filly looked around in confusion and fatigue, "W-who said that?" Wick said with a slightly shaken voice. No response was heard all was silent except for Wick's breathing and the wind howling outside, Wick looked around and called out once more "Is somepony here?" Again no response.
Wick looked at her clock and tried to adjust her eyes to the darkness to see what time of night it was, After Wick's eyes eyes adjusted a little she could see that it was midnight, She also knew that if she didn't get some sleep soon, she wouldn't be ready for her family picnic. Wick looked at her nightstand and picked up a candle with her magic, She stood still for a moment staring at her bedroom door, Questioning whether or not she should leave her room. Wick took in a deep breath and opened up the door stepping into the darkness that awaited her in the house.
The wind howled outside the trees being smacked around, The dark halls illuminated by the orange glow of Wick's candle. Wick had walked down these halls so many times. But it wasn't the same this night, To Wick it felt like something was watching her every move. Every once and awhile she would sneak a peek through the windows glimpsing at the pond and the forest and the pale moon. At the end of the hall she reached the stairs, Wick looked down with terror in her eyes, The stairs were almost like a hole into a dark nothingness. Wick started to walk down the stairs, The wood creaking under her hooves, She looked around trying to see if she could see anything with the candle's tiny illuminating glow.
After what could almost seem as an eternity Wick reached the bottom of the steps and creaking noises ceased. Wick looked towards the direction of the kitchen and began walking inside, In the kitchen the wallpaper was ripped, The cabinet's shredded and bashed open, Food over the floor and the kitchen window was completely open with the wind knocking over small weightless objects such as Salt and Pepper shakers. Faint noises could be heard from a dark corner of the kitchen, The pale moonlight from outside revealed something hunched over staring at Wick looking at her, making sure she can't see it with her candle.
Wick looked around in different directions pretending not to notice the creature, She then quickly walks back up the stairs and back down the long halls. When she reached the end of the hall were her room is, she quickly locked the door and sat still against the wall. Wick had a fear inside of her that has never been present before, She knew that something was in the house something not natural to her understanding. She would have thought it was an animal from the forest, But to her knowledge there wasn't any creature as big as that.
The pale skin and the reptilian like eyes that had a certain red tint to them. Wick silently got up and walked over to her window and decided to look outside at the pond, When Wick looked out at the pond all seemed peaceful. The wind pushing the water and the leaves of the trees swaying back and forth. But Wick noticed something, Near the pond it was there. The creature from before although she got a better look at it from the moonlight. It was hunched over near the river putting it's long claws inside the pond to get a drink.
It was tall, It's limbs were long and narrow almost like a thin branch of a tree, it had antlers like a deer, the creatures fingers were like long needles with crimson stain, The pale moonlight illuminating it's face as well showing it's ear to ear smile, It's sharp teeth pointed to the touch, Wick stared out in horror as the creature drank from the pond and looked back up at here from the pond. The creature stuck up one of it's long arms and waved.
Wick gasped and quickly jumped back from the monster's action, She slipped to her bed and hid under the covers. Her body shaking in terror as the monster now knows that she saw it, Wick slowly but surely got out of her bed and proceeded to walk to the window to check if whatever it was, was still there. Upon looking out the window there was nothing to be seen, the monster had vanished.
Wick heard noises coming from down the hall behind her door, The scratching of wood and the paintings dropping off the walls. Wick ran to her nightstand and places her candle back on it's little stand, She then slipped under the bed swiftly. It was dark, The only light being produced was the light from the moon beaming through her bedroom window, And the candle placed on her nightstand giving off a faint orange glow.
The noises continued to get closer and closer, And getting ever so louder and louder. Then all went silent, All that could be heard was the wind outside. Wick looked out from under her bed at her door to see if anything would happen, The door handle started to turn very slowly. Wick retreated back under the bed and whimpered quietly, the door began to creak open and a pair of footsteps could be heard in her room walking around.
The creature started to look around her room, The sound of books sliding off the shelves and drawers being opened slightly echoed throughout the room. The creature then stopped at the foot of Wick's bed penetrating it with it's long claws, Wick screamed in terror, The monster heard wick's scream and reached under the bed and dragged her out. The young filly desperately kicked trying to get loose from the creature's grasp but nothing seemed to work.
The creature stopped and took a good look at Wick with it's toothy smile, The creature than begin to open it's mouth and lower Wick towards it's sharp teeth. Wick started to cry and did the only last thing she could think of, With the little time she had left she grabbed the candle from her nightstand off it's stand with her magic, She then got the candle close to the monster's face. The monster stared at the candle's light for a second and begin to screech, Dropping it's eyes with both of it's thin hands.
Wick stared at the candle and kept getting it closer to the creature, the creature desperately tried to swipe at the candle but couldn't quite hit the candle due to it covering it's eyes. Wick then ran off down the hallway and down the stairs, Using her candle she started lighting every other candle in the house, After she lit all the downstairs candles she went to the stairs and saw the creature standing at the top staring down at her. Wick stared at the creature and stuck her tongue out at it, The creature snarled and lunged at her cutting her cheek with it's claws before noticing all the light's downstairs.
The creature began to screech again and ran for the kitchen window and jumped through it, Wick watched through the window as the creature retreated into the twisted and dark woods. The screeching of the creature got fainter and fainter till it was no longer audible to the young filly. Wick felt her cheek feeling the crimson blood go down her face, The young filly ran to the bathroom and got a bandage for her cheek.
After her cut was dealt with, Wick returned to her bedroom and lay'ed down in her bed placing the candle back on her stand, the candle was almost completely gone, the wax almost completely melted away. Wick looked at her bedroom clock one more time, The clock changed to 12:01, The witching hour had passed. Wick cried as she lay'ed in her bed the fear sweeping over her, After a few hours had passed, The sunlight pierced through Wick's window and on to her face waking her from her terrible slumber. Wick slowly raised up from her bed and slightly smiled, "Oh yay, Today's my families picnic" She said with a tired voice.
She quickly got up from bed and and out her bedroom door towards her parent's bedroom, Upon reaching her parent's bedroom she opened their door and jumped onto their bed with excitement. But after she jumped on the bed she heard a squish noise and the sheets took on a crimson color, "Mom...Dad?" Wick lifted the covers slowly with her magic to reveal the bodies of her parents torn and ripped to shreds, Their blood oozing from the sheets and off the bed. Wick screamed in terror at the sight of her parent's dead bodies, Looking up at the ceiling she could see something written in what seemed to be black ink.
"I tread the night's and I tread the skies"
"Looking for prey that will surely die"
"None could find me, I tend to hide"
"In dark places, were none stride"
Wick shook laying on the bed, A few hours later her aunt showed up for the picnic and entered the house. Wick's aunt heard the cries of her niece and traced them to the parent's bedroom, Upon entering the bedroom she soon to screamed in horror and fell down crying. Wick ran up to her Aunt and hugged her and told her about what happened the night before, About the creature that attacked her and tried to eat her.
A few hours later, Wick and her aunt left the house.
"S-s-sweetie, y-you're gonna have to stay with me for awhile, O-ok?" Wick's aunt said with a shaky voice.
"Y-y-yes, I understand Auntie" Her Aunt smiled nervously
"G-g-good" , Wick looked back at her home. She gasped when she saw the creature in the darkness of the woods waving at her before backing into the darkness...