A Gothic Story

There was only one door upstairs so slowly James opened it. Their stomachs summer salted inside of them. Sitting on the floor in the corner was a skeleton. They leaped down the stairs and sprinted out of the house.

That night when they all slept, James had a dream. He was back in the old house, in the little room upstairs. Still sitting in the corner was the skeleton, but it was moving, rocking. It started to talk to him, 'Why do you run? I will not hurt you. Come here, come!' The skeleton repeated this until James woke awoke. It rang through is head. Driven by an unnatural force, James got dressed and headed into the woods.

He walked into the small dark room. Still sitting in the corner, the skeleton rocked. James could just make out a smile on the skeleton's face. The skeleton whispered 'I've got him, I've got him!'

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Awoken abruptly by far off screams William, Mark and their Grandfather sat up in their beds. Recognising James' voice they all ran out into the woods, towards the not so deserted house.

In the hall way of the deserted house granddad sat Mark and William down and explained, 'You stay here while I look for your brother.' So with a knife held tightly in one hand, Granddad climbed the stairs.

He entered the room, he saw the smiling skeleton, but no James. Suddenly the skeleton laughed, 'I've got them all, I've got them all.'

William and Mark looked nervously around them. They were startled by a voice from upstairs. It sounded like James', " Come up, come up, I tricked you! It's fun up here!" So the young boys hurried up the stairs into the bedroom, ready to give James a good kick.

They opened the door and walked boldly into the dim room. Mark fell over an object on the floor. William pulled out a lighter from his pocket and passed it to Mark. Mark gave him a disapproving look but did not refuse the lighter.

He lit it close to the object on the floor. Lying on the floor was their granddad with his eyes ripped out of his head. They screamed and turned for the door, but it slammed in their face. Standing behind the door was their brother, with his eyes ripped out of their sockets also. He held a candle so the room was lit up with a gloomy flicker. Something tapped them from behind on their shoulders. They turned and standing behind them was the skeleton smiling.

By Cathy Westcott