Chapter 1
Everything seems perfect, in the town of Mistfall, where everyone helps each other, the town itself is small and quiet and it has a rural charm with the brick house surrounding the town. Jess is a young adult, with long silver hair and bright violet eyes that sometimes glow eerily in the dark if you pass her on the street.
Jess walks down the street of her small town and decides to get some fresh air; she has been cooped up in her house for the past couple of days, due to her studying for her college exam that is coming up soon. She walks past all the little shops that she strolls by on her everyday routine. Suddenly, a new shop catches her eye.
There is a Halloween-themed cafe that stops Jess in her tracks. She looks at the display in the window, adorned with delicious Halloween treats—macaroons of ombre colors, a three-tiered cake decorated with a ghost, a black cat on each side, with bright green icing and a witch hat to top it off.
Without hesitation, Jess walks through the door as a little bell rings. Jess’s nose fills with the warm aroma of baked treats, fresh out of the oven. She sees a massive pile of cakes, pies, cookies, with all the wonderful treats that are displayed in the shop. She doesn’t hear the owner of the shop walk up behind her.
“Hello, my dear,” the owner says. “What can I help you with today?”
Jess is startled as she places her hand over her chest.
“Oh, sorry, I didn’t hear you,” she says. “I’m just looking around for the moment,”
“I didn’t mean to startle you, my dear,” she chimes. “Just let me know if you need anything,”
The owner is a kind lady, in her mid-thirty, with long red hair and green eyes. She is a little bit taller than Jess, by a few inches. She is wearing a witch costume to match the theme of the store.
Jess continues to look at the display behind the glass. She gazes over each of the treats before deciding which one she wants. Jess looks up. She and the owner lock eyes. At that moment, the owner comes from behind the counter and assists Jess with her order.
“Have you decided what you want?” she says.
“Yes, can I get six of the boo macarons please.”
“Sure coming right up,”
She opens the door to the display and packs up the six macarons, putting the treats into a decorated Halloween bag, tying it off with a bright neon orange bow, as the sun shines through the shop and reflects off the silk ribbons.
“Here you go, my dear,” she answers. “I hope you enjoy it.”
“Thank you, I can’t wait to eat these,” She says. “How much do I owe you,”
“It will be $5.85,” she replies. “Before you go, how would you like to hear a story”
Jess checks the time on her phones and sees she still had enough time to hear a story.
“Sure, I would love to hear a story,” Jess said.
Jess hands her the money as they sit at a round wooden table. As the owner sits down in the chair across from her, Jess sees a shadowy figure out of the corner of her eye. When Jess turns her head, to get a better view of the figure, it vanishes.
“Now sit back, as I tell you a tale,” says the shop owner.
“The legend in Mistfall is that there’s a shadow figure that follows someone that will be the prophet, who will either be the savior or the destruction of this town. The shadow will choose someone to see if the host passes its test and if they fail, the shadow will come into our world, switch places with the victim, wreak chaos on the town and suck the souls out of the town folk.”
After the owner tells Jess the legends, her eyes glow eerily as the light in the cafe flickers on and off rapidly. The lights stop flickering, and her eyes stop glowing. Jess feels she overstays her welcome; she gets up from the chair and walks back to the entrance.
“Thank you for the story and treats,” Jess says. “But... I-I gotta get home,”
“Alright dear, get home safe,” the owner acknowledges. “Take care and be careful,”
Jess leaves the cafe, and walks back to her home as the cars drive by her; the headlights fade in the distance. The wind rustles the tree leaves and blows through her hair. Jess hears dogs barking at something but she just brushes it off, without worrying.
