Nightmare Forest

The horsemen were galloping down the dusty road. They had been ridden for a long time and Lica not being used to riding was awfully tired.

"How far is the forest?" she asked her companion.

"About an hour and a half," Henry said.

When the moon moved in the sky the dark wall of the forest appeared in front of them. The huge trees seemed to touch the sky.

"Is that it?" the girl showed forward.

The old man nodded.

"Yes, it's Nightmare Forest," he said. "If you have ever had nightmares, even as a child, they all live here. Do you remember any of your nightmares?"

"No."

"It's a pity. If you had at least we would have coped with them! If not... we would have to skip at random."

"Do you remember your nightmares?"

"Of course! I even had time to make friends with some of them. After all, I have an advantage - I live here! And I am a magi-cian a little bit."

Angelica and Henry came into the forest. The moonlight hardly permeated through the tall thick trees. Their branches were so intertwined that they looked like a picket fence. Only a narrow road led along.

"Follow me on my horse's hooves!" Edward's servant said quietly.

But only could he say that something huge and grey blocked their way...

"Meow - Meow!" grey creature roared. "What are you look-ing at? I will not let you go further! And it is all her fault! She is al-ways saying that "all cats are grey at night." But I used to be another color! So, until she guesses my color, you will not go!"

"Is it your nightmare?" Henry pointed toward the huge grey cat. "Come on, disentangle! Unless my nightmares come, I am afraid they may. If that happens, we will not be in laughing mood!"

The girl was lost in thoughts.

She remembered that when she was a little girl and refused to go to bed, her mother used to scary her by a horror story. Her mother would say:

At night Kitty will come after you,

And walk away with you!

It was the time when Lica came up with a huge scary cat Mr.Greytail. And at first it was not very scary. But then night by night he was getting more and more frightening!

"I am wondering what color he was," Lica thought aloud. "White? - No... Red? - No..."

Suddenly they heard terrible howl and a sound of hooves in the forest.

"Harry up, remember!" Henry was getting nervous.

"Ah! I have remembered!" Angelica shouted. "You were black… a usual black cat but with a grey tail!"

As she said that, the cat disappeared in the air.

"Come on, let's go!" the old man called her. "Someone seems to be chasing us! If it is my nightmare, it will not be easy! There must be fork road ahead. You will turn to the right and I will go to the left! Meet me beyond the forest!"

And Henry spurred his horse.

Hooves clatter was getting closer. Lica did not linger and had let her horse galloping. Soon she saw the fork road ahead. Although it was hardly perceptible, she instinctively turned to the right. Hoof beats had left behind her. But now she heard another unpleasant sound. As if sand was sifting somewhere. Angelica instantly re-membered the horror of her childhood – Mr. Sandman! Since she had read a book about him she hadn't been able to sleep properly.

"How had I escaped from him?" the girl began to remember quickly. "I think I just had closed my eyes and hid under the duvet!" The noise of sand was coming. Lica closed her eyes and stopped to control the horse.

"It will deal!" she thought. "Horses are intelligent animals!" "Angelica!" she heard someone's nasty raspy voice. "Angelica!

Open your eyes! I'm here! I have come for you!"

The girl clutched the reins tighter and even more screwed her eyes. But the voice continued:

"Angelica! At least once look at me!"

Lica did not respond. For some time the voice was saying something and then had gone but then she heard the sound of hooves behind her again. Someone or something was going to catch up the girl. She began to pull the reins of rushing galloping horse. But she felt that the "something" was reaching her! Suddenly she saw the edge of the forest in front. There was much brighter and Lica rushed there! Only when did she quite a bit get out of this horror Angelica felt someone's a stinking breath behind. She turned around and saw a huge black rider racing to her with his head in his arms.

"Sleepy Hollow!" the girl amazed. "But it's not my nightmare!" At this point the rider raised his head and threw it into Lica.

She screamed and fainted...