You couldn't see.

Everything was so dark in your room and you couldn't see.

Thunder boomed once more, momentarily lighting up the tower and stretching the shadows disturbingly tall on the walls. That split second made everything much more macabre and grotesque, as if their shadows exposed the monsters living in each nook and cranny. It was your one moment to fully grasp what was around you, but all that you could gather were a pair of long arms tightening around your middle while you felt a head lay against your neck, discouraging you to look over your shoulder at the man. And oh god, you could feel everything. You could feel his arms slowly crush you against him, painful enough to make them go numb with ache. They refused to budge and merely held onto you that much harder. His fingers were just as merciless, digging into your skin and piercing your flesh with their claw-like nails; they were so sharp that you feared you were already bloody and bruised.

All this pain, all this agony he was giving was nothing compared to the turmoil you felt when his lips brushed against your neck, soft and affectionate as he gently started to knead your skin for just a few seconds. It was very much like a tender lover, like someone rewarding their partner with butterfly kisses. This is what feared you the most. Nothing good came from a person who hid their true intentions, whether to kill you, love you, or lead you into a false sense of security. It was like asking for a knife in the back.

You gasped, a sharp fang gracing your throat and making your heart feel like it wanted to explode in your chest.

Then he spoke, tone low and delicate; just barely audible over the rain pounding against your windows.

"Where is it?"

He sounded breathless, tired. As soon as you sensed this, his grasp tightened around you. But instead of a loving embrace, it was a bone-crunching hurt that made it feel as if your limbs would snap in half and it only grew tighter until you choked out a gasp. Despite all this, you managed to keep from crying, though you were holding on by just a thread. Your arms were still folded to your chest from what had been a gesture of fear and protection, but now they felt awkward and uncomfortable as they were crushed under the force of this man until they lost all circulation. If there was any source of pleasure, it was the damned heart; the object of his desire wrapped so protectively in your fingers. The cold glass made you believe this was all real, that you weren't going insane and that all these things were truly happening. Should you be happy? Should you have wished that this had all been in your head?

You jerked as his teeth started to slowly sink into your neck, almost breaking the skin and spilling blood all down your front just like in your dream...

"H-Here! I have it!!"

He stopped, restraint still tight and firm as he shifted behind you. You weren't sure what he was doing but didn't have a chance to figure it out as his arms removed themselves from your body. You felt lighter, slightly relieved that you weren't to be crushed to death. This feeling was short lived when he moved his hands forward to snatch your wrists in an agonizing grip, forcing them away from your chest and out to where he could see them. His silence worried you. It made your heart stop beating and your breath hold in anticipation.

Then you felt something rumble against your back and realized it was his chest. It felt like light fingers tapping against your skin and not at all unpleasant. That is, until you realized it was him growling.

"What have you done to it?"

The words came out in a deep snarl that made your skin crawl and the hairs on the back of your neck rise, goosebumps rippling across your skin in a wave. You had to run, you had to get away before he killed you. He was going to feast on your flesh while you were still breathing and laugh at your despair. You had to run, RUN,RUN!!!!!!

Without thinking, you wiggled and jerked in his hold, kicking and pushing at the bed sheets for some leverage to escape. He was going to hurt you, rip out your very heart and crush it between his fingers. But he crushed your wrists in his hands instead, making them strain under his monstrous strength until they felt close to snapping; the pain forced you to arch right into his chest while your legs continued to struggle.

You sobbed, now feeling the wet tears finally trail down your cheeks, "I d-didn't do anything!!"

The man hissed into your ear, jerking your hands right into your face to look right at the jar. "Take this back where you found it."

Why was he so angry? You had it!! You had it and he should just take it!! Oh god, he was hurting you so much. Why couldn't he just take the cursed thing and leave you alone!? Confused, you tried to look over your shoulder at him, but he gave your wrists another rough shake.

"GO!!"

Before you could fathom what was happening, you were pushed roughly off the bed and onto the floor, body smacking into cold stone just as another round of lightning spiderwebbed across the sky. Your dress was high up your legs and your hair was in disarray and you felt like a driveling mess. It took so much effort just to sit up, your arms trembling and weak as you braced them against the floor. The jar had fallen from your hands and rolled away somewhere, abandoning you in your time of need. You got to your knees shakily and turned to look on your bed and were shocked to see no one there, even in the darkness you saw no human shape or sign of life.

Your hands flew to your neck where the stranger had nearly bitten you and still felt the raw skin where he'd been kneading it. Was this real? You hadn't just fallen out of bed from a nightmare?? Oh god, did you want it to be real? Did you want to face this every single night with no reprieve?!

Your throbbing wrists were your only answer.

Light flashed across the room as a long streak of lightning and thunder roared. The momentary source of light gave you a chance to locate the jar that held the demon's heart. Scanning the room quickly, you found it laying right beside the old mirror, the object still covered in the sheet you'd thrown over it out of desperate anger.

And then it was dark once more, accompanied with the sound of heavy rain and your flustered breathing.

Scrambling, you felt the floor until you had the item and clung to it with fierceness. You rocked there for a few seconds, cradling the jar close as you tried to calm your racing heart. This small, horrifying moment did wonders for you, giving you the strength to stand up and stumble towards your door. To think, a mummified heart was giving you strength. The thought made you feel like you were damaged beyond repair.

No more. No more of any of this. If some monster wanted you to put back the object of your misery, who were you to say no? It didn't matter if it made you feel safe from this castle, from these terrifying ghosts and their stories and from the very demon who orchestrated it all. You wanted it all gone, you wished to be free!!

You longed to go home.

It took a bit to leave your room, your wobbling legs hindering your progress as you tried to go down the little flight of stairs that led to the room's entrance. You were just so frightened. Nothing seemed right anymore and you knew if you stayed in this room you'd only be tortured by this creature who thinks you've done something to his heart. All this kept running over and over in your head until the diary's words started to echo continuously in your mind to the point of wanting to make you weep.

"I don't want to be a princess!!" "I don't want to be a princess!!"

When you finally made it through your door you found yourself more stable then before, able to stand upright while your legs fully supported your weight without threatening to collapse. It made you feel a little bit better and thankful that you could now make it down the many flights of stairs that led to your tower room. You had some kind of control again and that sense of control made you feel braver.

But you weren't going to take any chances, you moved close to the stone wall and braced it with one arm while your feet felt around for the first step. The torches weren't lit so you were alone in the darkness, alone and vulnerable.

There were no windows on the curving tower wall, no thunder or lightning to show you where to step and how far you had to go. You were blind. You had nothing to defend yourself in this depressing castle and were too scared to go back to your room to face the consequences of not returning the jar to it's rightful place.

It took eight long, agonizing minutes before you made it down the first step, waiting for some hand to snap out and jerk your ankles so you would tumble down down down down down down-

No. Stop. You weren't going to trip. Nothing was going to attack you and nothing was going to keep you from ending this madness.

Steeling yourself, you proceeded down the next step. Then the next and the next and soon you were going at a steady pace down the dark tower.

The air felt damp and humid, the rain water soaking into the old stone and making your skin sticky with sweat. Despite it being the cool season, the temperature felt uncomfortably warm, the only relief being the cold wall you leaned against. You could feel the moisture against your dragging fingers as you slowly made it downwards, coating your hand and making it damp with rain and dirt. You could hear the sound of water dripping onto the floor, a soft contrast to your heavy breathing and bare feet padding against stone.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

You found comfort in this noise and anticipated hearing the next drop of water splashing to the ground. Drip. It made you stand up a little straighter and walk in bolder steps. Drip. Soon you found yourself pacing to the sound, placing your bare feet down in tempo with each drop of rain. Drip.

You were fine. Everything was going to be okay.

Drip. Drip.

Tears welled up again and you smiled, so happy something was going right. Something wasn't trying to stop you or scare you out of your wits. Drip. You reached up and wiped an eye, heart feeling like it was finally settling down after pounding so hard and quick for so long. It was silly, but it was the only light you had in this situation. For once, you felt brave and bold, strong and mighty. Drip. You felt normal again. All of this flooded into you and you found yourself going faster down the steps, knowing you were finally nearing the end. It was easy, the water was dripping down faster too, it gave you a pace in this long, unforgiving stairway. Drip.Drip.Drip.

Your foot slipped and you just barely caught yourself before you went sliding down. Your arm bracing the wall managed to keep steady as you righted yourself. You didn't go any further, just took a few deep breaths as you tried to figure out how much longer you had to go. Ten? Maybe thirteen more steps?

Wait...

Your heart rate sped up and you swiveled your head around in panic, searching and straining to hear.

"Where is it?" You whimpered and clung to the stone before pushing your back fully against the wall, scurrying as close as you could. "Where is it?! Where is it?!!"

It'd stopped!! The dripping had stopped!! No more splash of water or drops that penetrated the daunting silence of the tower. No more calming sounds of rain! No more safety!! Your fingers tightened around the glass jar, holding it close to your own chest in hope that the still-heart would convince your beating one to slow down.

And then you were crying. Your legs felt weak again as you tried to stay standing.

"It's gone," You wailed faintly. "Why, why, why, why??!"

But you had to keep going. You were almost there, you could feel it in your very bones. You had to get this heart back to the chapel, back to where it could be locked up and you could be free of this insanity. With a shaky breath, you forced your leg to move forward without the help of the rain and it's safe, reassuring tempo.

Oh god, what was wrong with you?

You were so pathetic, crying over rain like a child who was caught in it the first time. When had you become this way? Were you even the same person anymore? Were you going to launch yourself from your tower window one day in hope of a better afterlife? Anger replaced some of your fear and urged you forward once more, looking more resolute in your steps downward.

You were glad it was dark, glad nothing could see your bottom lip tremble and tears fall from your eyes.

It wasn't too much longer until you finally reached the bottom of the stairwell and felt around until you found the handle to a door. You pushed it open quickly, eager to get out of the dark tower and it's soundless existence and into the great hall.

The door was loud as you opened it, it's groan echoing off the grand chamber from one corner to the next and back to you. There were a few candles lit on the long table, though they were almost melted down all the way, their wax spread out across the wooden surface. This wasn't adequate light, but you didn't need it. The tall windows that stretched from the floor to the ceiling gave exactly what you needed.

The dark sky loomed and rumbled and it almost seemed like the rain had stopped, only very light sprinkles coating the glass and running down it in long trails. The room was freezing and felt much bigger without anyone walking around with clothes, food, or tools in hand. It was eerily quiet and the little light you got from outside didn't illuminate everything. There were still corners and crevices that were cloaked in shadow, the high ceiling was pitch black and hid anything that may swoop down on you and snatch at your hair. The furniture that had been brought with you and arranged in ways to be comfortable in the day now looked foreboding and suspicious at night, making you unsure of what was really there or not.

It made you marvel that you had been able to explore it your very first night without fear. Perhaps you really had been a different person then...

Pushing the thought away to be analyzed later, you decided that the quickest way to the chapel was through your father's room. The door was the next one over from your own and you would only have to cross the garden where the man had fallen to his death and another had been crushed by a statue of a gargoyle...where Abigail had been found.

No, enough! Both hands now gripping the jarred heart, you ran to your father's door and swung it open. Inside was the tiny hallway that led to his quarters, still untouched by it's owner. The wall leading to it had been fixed, the hole long gone and a stained glass window put in it's place. You passed it quickly, eyes glancing at the picture of a gold cross with rainbow shards decorating the edges.

You glared, wishing it would give you some sense of protection. But there was no time for that, you had to hurry. You wanted this done.

It was a short hallway, so you were already opening the door to your father's room where everything had been arranged to what you all believed he would like. No longer was the furniture covered in sheets and placed in the very center of the room. Now his bed was up against the far left wall, made up and clean as it waited for it's master to finally use it. The wooden desk where your father would write his papers was on the opposite next to the bookshelf, many titles of historical significance cluttering the shelves. His knick knacks were on his mantle piece, clothes folded and hung neatly in the wardrobe just over by the closet.

All it needed was your father to finally feel like home.

And just across the way was the other door leading to the garden, to the chapel, to the finish line.

You rushed forward with your nightgown sticking to your body from the humidity and moisture, the cold hall you'd been in previously doing nothing to help you; you touched the handle and made to open it but stopped at the sound of a hushed sob.

Your shoulders tensed and your breath hitched, knowing that had not been your own. Should you keep going? Did you dare turn?

Another. Louder, but gentle and sad.

It was a woman, her keening slowly being heard over the soft rumbling of thunder outside.

"Please..."

You froze, gradually turning to the sound of the voice who'd called out to you. Right next to the door you'd just come through was a tall mirror, not nearly as much as the one in your room, but still big enough to take in your whole silhouette if one were standing in front of it. It was ordinary and plain, nothing of note other then the girl who was standing in it, her back to you with her face in her hands.

She was slight and pale in her yellow nightgown, as if she had just been woken from a nightmare like you and was seeking comfort. She was taller then you and sported long, curly brown hair that reached down to the waist in beautiful waves. It was so pristine and glorious, you were sure anyone would wish to comb their fingers through it.

"Please, don't do it." She said softly, never turning to you as you stared in awe at the vision in the mirror. You found yourself stepping closer, curious.

"Don't do what...?" Was this your chance for answers? A spirit who wished to help? "What don't you want me to do?"

The girl sobbed again, crouching to her knees and rocking back and forth on her heels. "Don't don't don't!!"

You felt a wave of pity wash over you and was soon standing just in front the object. You swallowed. "Please, tell me...I want to help."

Her rocking slowed and she sniffled, shoulders shaking in grief. "Don't put it back...If you put the heart back, you'll die."

You felt like someone was gripping your lungs, squeezing all the air out as you tried to think of a way to respond. Was she telling the truth? Were you truly walking to your death? It was possible...

"I have to-"

"No!!" The mirror shook and made you step back, eyes wide in fright. She quieted again, "Don't go. Don't go. Don't go!"

You paused, letting her cries settle down a little before you took a step forward, hesitant to say anything. "Abigail...?"

The closet door across the room slammed open and caused you to jump and look it's way. The tiny room was pitch black and the door swung lazily after it slammed against the wall, moving to close before finally stopping halfway.

"Don't go-!!" Something brushed your ankle and you stumbled back when you realized a hand had reached out to grab you. You watched in horror as the limb tried to desperately snatch for your dress, realizing as the room lit up from the storm outside that the whole arm was rotting. Skin hung off the bone, raw and red mixed with oozing browns that showed signs of decay. The smell hit you just as quickly, rotten eggs and meat that was mixed with mud and dried blood. You almost fell backwards but kept your balance as you tried to find the source of the arm only to realize it was coming from the mirror.

And there she was, turned to face you now, wondrous curly hair framing a decomposing face. Her cheeks were peeling away from the white bones beneath, her nose was no longer there as a gaping hole glared in it's place. She had no lips, long rotted away while yellow teeth clacked at you like a rat.

She had no eyes. Just black craters that stared straight at you as the creature clumsily crawled out of the mirror, voice now raspy as if trying to forever gasp it's last breath. "Give it to me!!"

You screamed.

Backing away, you turned to go back to the door before she grasped your leg, soft fleshy fingers digging into your skin and almost causing you to fall. You turned and kicked her face, disgust coiling inside you when you felt her bare teeth slam against the top of your foot and snag your skin. Her neck snapped back with a loud crack, hanging at an awkward angle as she collapsed into the ground and wailed.

She gazed up at you, somehow looking more rotted away and very, very angry. "Give me the heart!!!"

You turned and ran, slamming open the door as the sound of scuttling followed after you, knowing she was crawling as fast as she could to try and snag at your dress, knees and elbows most likely bent at awkward angles from the loss of muscle and skin. Just as you reached the other side of the doorway, you slammed it shut, pushing against it with all your strength as a scream rattled on the other side.

"It's mine!! It's mine!!!"

Breathing heavy, you turned and started to run down the long hall, not wishing to stay any longer.

You'd almost forgotten that this hall was lined with mirrors all the way down, making you glimpse at yourself and seeing exactly what you'd seen that fateful night. You looked so tired, so exhausted and terrified.

But your reflection was joined with another, a woman catching up to you with stumbling swiftness; the same rotting Abigail now following right behind you in the mirrors. You turned and saw no one actually following you and looked back, seeing her much slower now with her arms stretched out and her hands formed into claws. Her mouth was open wide and her dress appearing more and more like tatters each new mirror you passed. The woman's face continued to rot like time was passing and her hair started to look less and less luxurious, her scalp becoming more visible with each step.

"I need it!" She wailed in agony, getting closer to your reflection and snatching at your arm.

You cried out in pain as your sleeve was cut open and a long scratch appeared on your arm, blood trickling down and dropping to the floor.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

You sobbed and swung out your arm, hitting something just behind you and feeling wet flesh splatter against your skin. Abigail fell in the mirror, screaming as she landed on the ground from your swing and started to pull at her hair. You didn't stop to watch her heave and slam her fists against the floor as you made it to the end of the hall, pushing the door open and stepping out into the garden. You slammed it closed, searching around until you saw a wooden bench against the wall a few paces down.

You rushed over and grabbed it, dragging it the best you could with the heart in hand right in front of the door. It was heavy and seemed to refuse you for a moment until you got enough traction to place it in front of the door, your toes now bloody from pulling it too fast and bumping into them. You backed away cautiously, watching with wide eyes as the door rattled and pushed against the heavy object before bony fingers slipped under the door and try to claw their way out.

That was a sign to you to start running again, now sprinting through the garden and ignoring the pain in your feet as you stepped on broken sticks and sharp rocks. The area was exactly the same as the first night, having been left alone while the rest of the castle got most of the care and attention. It was a low priority and no one wished to venture to the place where the man had fallen...

Your legs felt like they were on fire as you finally made it to the stone fence and climbed over, scraping your knees raw on the rough surface and bloodying up the front of your white dress.

But you were almost there. You were so close. You can make it!!

You were crying in relief as you neared the door to the chapel. Smiling when you swung it open and greeted by the same broken statue. Ecstatic when you ran towards the altar that was littered with pink petals and burnt out candles. A rain puddle had formed just to the right of the stone woman, leaves and flowers floating serenely in the water, drops of rain still falling from the ceiling in slow rhythm and making you feel safe.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Just like the blood that was flowing from your arm and onto the floor.

But your smile fell and your body grew still as you stared at the woman's bare feet, your own now coarse and scratched with blood as you stood in the cold, wet chapel.

It was gone.

The tiny wooden chest was gone.