S E V E N

It was cold when Mia woke to her surroundings. The little stream under her got her nightdress drenched and she shivered slightly from the cold. She was in a cave like place, stinking of rotting wood and moss mixed with an undertone of cedar.

Above her, the roof top was so high she would never reach it even if she tried and there was a small hole streaking in some light. She used her limbs to prop her body up, regretting it immediately as a sharp jolt of pain shot firing up all her nerves. Was I thrown in here?

She had vague details of what happened, of the other girl, and the mirror. She remembered about her talking of where she came from; where there was silence and no music.

She tried getting up one more time and she did this successfully, stretching her hand to hold the cave walls for support. They were slippery and she rubbed along a Cauca plant, releasing the yellow pollen grains into the air. She got up steady on her feet, her night dress clinging into her skin out of wetness. The pollen grains wafted up and she unfortunately inhaled some of it.

There was no effect for the first few minutes, as she tried to get to the entrance of the cave. The light outside was not too bright, nor was it too dull. Maybe it is early dawn or dusk. She crept out, her bare feet feeling the softness of ugly yellow mosses which gave the impression of sinking beneath her feet at any time.

A small chuckle escaped her lips involuntarily, then another and another and she could not stop laughing. She fell upon a rotting log on her path out of laughter, even the creeping behind her could not stop her.

"Hello traveler." A voice called from behind her, cold and scratchy and low in an unnerving way. Mia turned around bringing her left hand onto her lips to prevent another chuckle from escaping. "You inhaled the Cauca plant." The stranger noted moving close.

Mia noticed that the stranger had no clothes on, and the plants growing on her body seemed to be the only thing she wore. Her hands were tree roots and her eyes hollow, with no sort of eyeballs. Her mouth opened one more time to reveal a shiny set of black teeth and a fork tongue.

"You are human!" She exclaimed taking another cautious step forwad. The effects of Cauca were wearing off and Mia quickly scrambled to her feet, trying to move back. The stranger now had a malicious grin on her face, her pointed feet taking another step.

"Who are you?" Mia demanded hugging herself. The effects of Cauca took place and she began sneezing consecutively.

"Shh! Quiet child, the rest must learn of your existence in this world." The stranger explained taking another step. "Am a Grutte."

A second voice squealed and Mia turned left. It was another kind of her species, only shorter and her body was sprouting from green, unlike the woody first stranger. She looked at Mia directly and Mia stared at the hollow space meant for her eyes wondering if it was eye contact.

"We are Gruttes with a hungry thirst for mortal blood young one." She explained to Mia and the first stranger turned sharply.

"You barnacle you are ruining this!" She reprimanded her, her voice screeching from iniside her throat. The bines on her back stood up creating an even larger being than the sizeable grown adult human she looked like before.

"How did she get here? I haven't drunk from a mortal for ages..."

Mia stepped back warily, the log tripping her over and she fell on the other slopping side. She could here them curse, she could see a hungry crowd of Gruttes gather over the edge. She had no option but to let her body tumble over to wherever.

The ground was smooth to her favour, and she only got muddy instead of banging her head somewhere and dying. She landed face first into a stream and the impact hurt her whole face. Water entered her nose in a strong stream and she puffed out her cheeks, prying her eyes open in the stinging water.

Her feet touched the bottom and she used her toes to push her to the surface. Her lungs were burning for air but she pushed on in the abnomarly viscous water tongue surface gripping at a rock tongue side. She looked around her and noticed that it was some sort of a deep canyon, and the drop was great.

I hand reached out to help her and she gave her left hand in hesitation to the new strange being. She was hauled out of the water with one swift action, falling on dry ground and proceeding to cough out water. Her eyes still stung, and she gagged at t horrible taste o the water.

"Every day at this hour the Marmalods excrete." The new voice explained pointing to the stream. "That is not water."

Mia made a move to vomit but nothing came out. She could not understand how theybwere able to make a stream out of that.

"What is your name?" He asked and she looked up toninspect his features. He was human like, with limbs and hair, but his eyes were an only shade of white scaring her unto recoiling. The veins on the side of his head were prominent and the pale skin allowed Mia to see the blue blood flowing inside them. His hair was a mixture of brown and blue swaying with the wind and a few insects habitted the area. It was grass, he had nature growing on his head.

"What is your name?" He asked one more time cocking his head to the side. All Mia wanted to do was run but her limos failed her. She coughed up one more time and scurred back when he took a step forwad. "You are human." He observed like the. Gruttes crouching to her level. His mouth was also a pit of black and she speculated he could be evil too. "How did you get here?" His hand reached out and touched her ankles, her dry cracked fingers feeling the flesh on it. "You are indeed human!" He exclaimed dropping her feet Mia's body erupting into goosebumps. Her brain gave her a simple command; RUN!