Every footstep rang out in the dark as I walked down the darkened driveway. I could feel my own chest rise and fall with breaths much heavier than normal. The night brought a pleasant, cool breeze, yet for some reason, it shook me; it chilled me and caused me to erupt into an uncontrollable fit of shaking. The girl standing in the middle of the road kept her eyes locked on me, making sure I didn't get cold feet, so to speak.

Even in the darkness, the thick black shroud that obscured much of her appearance, I could still see those glowing yellow eyes. Those eyes cut through the darkness, shining with some sort of twisted glee. Every time my eyes moved to meet them, I quickly averted my gaze once more. Looking into them was simply too much to bear.

Pat, pat, pat.

Every step gave a soft pat as my bare feet hit the cool pavement of the sloped driveway. Closer. Closer. Every step brought me closer to her. I had to follow her. Then maybe she'd leave me alone. I know that it was a foolish decision, but my desperation had peaked, and I would do anything to be rid of her. I knew that there was a chance that it was a trap. A very good, very real chance. But that was a risk that I was willing to take. In hindsight, I might not have been in my right mind. I might not have been sane at all.

As I neared the bottom of the driveway, I stopped. I hesitated for a moment. The moment I did, her eyes seemed to flare up the slightest bit, burning with a sort of anger. It was so subtle, that change in her eyes, yet so frightening. Yet just as soon as they had changed, they returned to the same confident eyes I had seen before.

Her lips pulled back like before, silently mouthing the same words.

Follow me.

I moved to take another step, but stopped. But... I thought, I don't want to. The brief, fiery glance she had shot seemed to bring me to my senses, if only for a moment.

Follow me.

I shook my head. I don't want to do that. This was a mistake.

Follow me.

No.

Follow. Me. That time, as she said it, the same gleam burned in her eyes. It burned just to look at them.

I gripped my elbows, clutching my own arms tightly as the uncontrollable shaking returned. I didn't want to follow her anymore but... the look she gave me... what would she do to me if I refused?

Tears formed in the corners of my eyes as I forced myself to step forward, trembling with every single step. Was I going to die if I followed her? Would I die either way? I pushed the thoughts aside as I approached her. Closer. Closer.

Then she was gone.

I was alone in the middle of the street, surrounded by the same thick darkness that had shrouded the girl not long before. Turning around slowly, I stared into the dark, straining my eyes to see where the girl had gone. She wouldn't just vanish after telling me to follow, right? It wasn't long before I found her. Or rather, I found her glistening yellow eyes, shining through the dark. By the look of it, she was standing some thirty feet off. Waiting for me to follow.

My heart sank. I should have known she wouldn't let me off so easily. With a deep breath and a shake of the head, I began to step into the darkness to follow after her. An unusual darkness wrapped around me as I walked; with the absence of street lights, it was always dark, yes, but the dim lights from the houses typically provided little light to see by. But what I walked through was nearly pitch black, the only things visible were vague outlines and shadows that were slightly darker than the rest of the darkness.

I realized as I strode along that the houses all looked the same, at least, from what little outlining I could see. That might seem crazy, with how hindered my vision was, but I wasn't mistaken. Each house had the same exact outline. The same shape. The slight shine of the windows in the same exact spots. None of them had any lights on, though, creating that deep darkness that unnerved me.

Turning back for a moment, I searched for the soft light of my own house, unable to stand the darkness any longer. To my dismay, I found that I could not see it. In fact, I could not see any of the houses that were once there, just the same exact dark outlines that lay ahead of me.

My breathing became erratic and unstable, and I clutched my elbows once more. I no longer had a choice. I was following that girl, like it or not. Slowly, I turned my eyes to meet the two yellow lights that still pierced the shadows. Still waiting. I gulped. Then I followed them once more.

I followed them as though they were the lure of an angler fish. They guided me through the dark, always growing closer and closer only to suddenly be far away once more. They lured me farther and farther, through the sea of darkness and straight into the jaws of the angler fish.

I first realized that it really was a trap once I saw the others.

As I neared the girl, only for her to vanish and reappear another thirty feet in front of me, something caught my eye in one of the darkened windows to my left. It was another pair of sharp, yellow eyes. I couldn't make out any of the features of the figure they belonged to, only those yellow irises that shone with that same confident gleam. That same predatory gleam.

I turned away. I could ignore it. I could. I didn't have to let it get to me.

The walk continued, but that second pair of eyes never vanished. It appeared again and again, in the same exact spot in the same exact window of every other house on my left. It never left me alone. Rather, it was soon accompanied by another on the right, watching through the window. Not long after, a third pair appeared, gazing from between two of the houses.

As I followed the girl, I glanced nervously from one pair to another, trying to keep track of them all. Their stare... I could feel it on me, even when I didn't see it directly. They were watching me. Sizing me up. Anticipating the fall of their prey.

My head began to spin and ache, and the pairs of eyes became yellow blurs as I clutched my head. There were more. More eyes were appearing. A pair had begun to appear on the rooftops, silently observing from above.

I knew then that I had made a grave mistake. So I did the most sensible thing I could think of. I turned the other way, the way I had come from, and began to run. I ran, my bare feet hitting hard against the abrasive asphalt. They began to throb, but I ignored it. My lungs began to burn, but I ignored it. That splitting pain in my side (the kind that comes from running too much) tore through me, but I ignored it. I ignored every ailment, for none of it mattered. I had to escape.

Yet the eyes continued to follow me down the row of identical houses. They followed, and they multiplied. I saw one peeking out from the bushes. I continued to run. I saw one staring down at me from a tree. I continued to run. I saw one standing on the side of the road, wrapped in darkness save for the eyes just like all the others. I continued to run.

I ran until my body was at its limit, at which point I tumbled forward and collapsed into the asphalt. I felt a burning agony shoot through my arms and legs, as well as the side of my face. Blood dripped from my arms as I staggered to my feet. The eyes were all around me, watching from every possible angle. I wanted to run more, yet my body refused. I was out of breath, scraped, bloodied and sore.

Looking toward one of the houses, I saw that the front door had been opened a small amount. Just enough for me to see a pair of eyes shining through, and a pair of dark hands gripping the door. They were emerging. Drawing closer. As I stared from one to another, I could begin to make out their forms, though only barely. Humans. They looked like humans.

I then saw that the girl that I had been following still stood in front of me, her features still obscured by the dark. However, her eyes seemed wider. Wilder. More insane than before. Hungry.

I watched in horror as her lips drew back to reveal two rows of shiny white teeth. I don't know if you can imagine it, but try to picture it. I could barely see her body, and couldn't see any of her face except for two crazed, yellow eyes and a vicious white smile. I tore my eyes away, but saw that the others had done the same. They were all grinning that same, nasty grin.

As my eyes darted about, trying to keep up with all of them at once, I realized that they were drawing closer. Closer. Closer. I could begin to make out their shapes. At first they had seemed human, but as they drew closer, I saw that they were most certainly not human. They seemed to distort as they drew closer, their arms and legs seeming to stretch into long, spider-like limbs and their fingers growing into lengthy claws barely visible in the dark.

Each time I looked away and looked back, they seemed more vicious. More hungry. Their eyes grew wilder and their smiles grew wider. On all fours, they crawled out of the bushes and over the rooftops with their stretched frames, circling me, looking for the right angle from which to pounce.

That was when I began to hear the heavy breathing. Not my own breaths, but theirs. Heavy breaths with a low growl to them. They were excited. Very, very excited. The "girl" whom I had been following began to open her mouth. It opened so wide, almost as though a snake was unhinging its jaw. She didn't even look like a girl anymore. She looked like a monster, like all the others. A horrifying, disgusting monster with long, spider-like limbs and a snake's jaw.

I knew then that I was going to die. As she opened her mouth, the others began to follow suit. They were going to devour me. Swallow me whole? No, they all looked eager for a bite. More likely they would tear me limb from limb.

The "girl" was shaking violently, vibrating in anticipation of what was to come. Then, without warning, one of the others lunged at me, aiming to take a bite out of my shoulder. The "girl", however, moved between me and my attacker with an echoing scream, thrusting her long arms into its mouth and ripping the top of its head away from its jaw. She then tossed aside its limp body with a triumphant yell and turned to the others. She would be the one to get the first bite. She was the boss. She turned back to me, her jaw unhinging once more. The others looked on, their jaws open. They all seemed to be shaking and vibrating with the same anticipation she was.

Finally, when it seemed she could bear it no longer, she lunged at me with an ear-splitting scream to deliver the killing blow. Her jaws stretched as they aimed for my neck. I froze, too mesmerized by the horrific scene to react.

The only thing I could do in that moment was close my eyes and hope it was over quickly. I clamped them shut and waited for the worst, but it never came. Instead, I heard the sickening noise of the tearing of flesh. After several moments passed and nothing touched me, I finally dared to open my eyes.

Through the shadows, I could make out the shape of the "girl" lying motionless on the ground not far away. There were strange chunks surrounding the spot where her head should have been. Large chunks of something that I could only barely make out in the darkness. I couldn't see her head at all, simply those... chunks.

Some sticky liquid lapped at the bottoms of my bare feet. A strange, iron-like smell hung in the air. Blood. Someone's blood. But it wasn't mine, I had no open wounds save for the scrapes on my arms. No. It was her blood.

Someone else stood in the dark with me. Someone who was the exact opposite of the abominations that surrounded me. The silhouette of a man stood in the dark. I couldn't tell if he was facing me, or looking away. I felt feelings of comfort. Just like when I saw the figure in the snowstorm, and in the aftermath. It couldn't possibly have been the same man, could it? I didn't care. I was too consumed in the comfort of his presence to care.

The other creatures stared at him. Their smiles had vanished, replaced by stares of shock and awe. The heavy breathing had also ceased, creating a silence that lasted for several moments. Then, in complete and utter pandemonium, the creatures turned and fled, scrambling over and trampling each other, all trying to get away as fast as they possibly could. As they fled, they screamed, presumably in horror. I thought I would be deafened by the cacophony.

In seconds flat, they had scrambled into the shadows, leaving me alone with my peculiar protector. I wanted to tremble. I wanted to cry after what I'd seen. But I couldn't. Not when I felt as comforted as I did around that man. I knew at that moment that as long as he was around, I would be safe. Safe from the dangers of the neighborhood. I... I almost didn't want to leave his side. Then I realized how late it was, and just how tired I felt. I also remembered the scrapes on my body that I would have to treat.

I cringed as the shock and fear escaped me and were replaced by the pain from my fall. I had to get back to my house. I turned around to search for any way out of the strange alley of identical houses, but instead, I saw my own, a dim light flowing down the driveway. I looked around again. The houses were as they had always been; dim light from some of them fell into the street, allowing me to see my surroundings once again. I was free of the trap they had set.

It occurred to me that I owed a "thank you" to the man who rescued me. I turned to him, but he was already walking away, down the street and into the dark.

I hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Th... thank you! Thanks for saving me," I called out as he walked away.

He stopped, and turned to face me. I could see that he was wearing a dark hoodie that obscured much of his body. But when he faced me I could see his face a bit better. Fair skin devoid of blemish. Dark eyebrows and dark hair hanging over his forehead. Dark eyes with a calm, gentle look. Everything about him was pleasant, and further reinforced my trust toward him.

He gave a warm smile, then mouthed something to me.

I moved closer. "I'm sorry," I said, "I didn't catch that. What was it you said?"
He closed his eyes, his expression seeming to grow sad as he shook his head. Then he opened his eyes and mouthed it once more before turning and leaving.

"Wait!" I called after him. "Don't go! I have so much to ask you! Were you the one out in that storm? Why? HOW??"

He shook his head again and gave me a friendly wave. And with that, he vanished into the darkness.

The rest of my night was peaceful. At least, relatively. I bandaged my injuries and went to bed. I ended up sleeping 'till about noon the next day. I never saw any of the "strangers" again. I didn't hear of anyone else encountering them either. On the other hand, that strange man seemed to pop up more and more. He still hasn't said a word, but hey. I feel a lot safer knowing that he's around.

As for what happened that night, I do have a theory. Of course, I can't say for sure, but this is what I think. I'd advise that you not take it to be fact, however. It's merely the deduction of a fifteen year-old kid, and thus is hardly credible. But here's what I think.

I think that they dwell in something like an alternate dimension, or mirror world. They cannot last for too long in our world, so they come in little bits at a time, slipping in and out repeatedly, trying to lure someone in. If they can get someone to follow them, then the victim is pulled into their world, where they pounce all at once. However, it seems that one can possibly escape, or return to their own world. I'm not sure how, but how else would I be here? To be completely fair, the odds are good that the theory is false altogether.

While I'm writing this, I can't help but wonder about them. About the Strangers. And about my theory. Perhaps with a little more information, I could learn more. The feelings of disgust and terror have long since been replaced with strong curiosity. And maybe I could work on my theory more. Are they attracted to this neighborhood because of everything else? How strong are their powers? Do they really live in a mirror world of sorts? Given everything that's happened, I know that it's thoroughly foolish. But maybe...

Maybe with enough observation, I could learn more.

No. I shouldn't.

But maybe... just maybe...

Maybe I could learn something from one more encounter.