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Karloff had found some answers. He knew who he was searching for, and he had to deal with that before...well before he could do what he really wanted. But first, he had to make his peace with his mother.

The snow was falling slowly, it was the first of the year. He could feel the chill snowflakes melt as they touched his back, at first. But then as he trudged on through the quickly piling banks, the flakes remained on his back unmelted. Before long he was covered in it.

And he remembered.

Blinding pain...Chaos...blood....anger.....Pain.....Sorrow.....

He shook it off, best not to deal with it now. He needed to get to the graveyard first. Talk to his mother, before going to find him.

He had imagined what it would be like to find the one who killed his mother, that made him into this. But was he ready? He'd have to face his demons soon.

He turned his head quickly, coming back to reality with a sharp jolt. Someone was near by.

Karloff turned to face the sound, he knew who it would be. It was like fate. He could feel his pulse accelerating, and he dug his hoof into the ground in anticipation. He watched as the figure became apparent, his teeth glinting in the night.

But it wasn't him. It was someone else... A mare, a strange one at that. Her eyes were pure white, and they seemed as if they could penetrate his very soul. It was unnerving to say the least. For a moment longer, he remained still.

Shifting his weight, he spoke. "What are you doing out on a night like this?"

The land of the dead...It seemed he had been heading there since the day he was born. Each step he had taken, had taken him closer and closer to death...to the one who had killed his mother. And when they met, it would be death for one of them. HE had taken everything he had ever loved, made him into this....this.

He shook off the dark feelings. "What if that's where I want to go?" He assessed her again. She was odd, her speech slightly disjointed.

"My mother. I never said goodbye, and it's time I did." He watched her uneasy side-stepping. "Does it...scare you?"

Why was he so unaffected by it? His mother had died, he had buried her. The blood was on him. He had wept, and cried. No tears would bring her back. Maybe that's when death stop being terror to him. It was final...final...

"I understand." He tilted his head to watch her wariness. "We could walk a little ways away, you...Did something hurt you, bother you here?"

Karloff walked away with her, watching her shifting and sliding away. "Okay...Yes, my mother. She's dead. A long time ago....I never got to...I didn't understand the importance of saying goodbye. So I have to do it now."

She seemed overly hesitant, whatever had happened must have been horrid. He was intrigued, but he wouldn't push it. Let everyone hide their own demons.

"Do you believe...it's the end? Or that there's no use in saying goodbyes?" He wondered what it was, why she was frightened. But he couldn't ask. It was rude, she was already wary. "I...at first..I didn't think this would do any good, but now...for a time it's all I thought about. To come here, tell her I'm okay, she doesn't have to worry about me anymore."

Karloff nodded, "I think she would. She'd like to know that I'm okay, that her sacrifice was worth it." He shut his eyes, "And you believe that though you don't feel it's the same for you?"