Quote:
Caroling has been a tradition for years, so it’s really no surprise when you hear a soft chorus from outside. What is a surprise is the fact that it’s three in the morning, and the moment they start singing you feel a chill in the air. It’s a song you’ve heard a hundred times before, but something about this version makes you go cold. If you move to the window, you will find no carolers, but the song is loud enough that you know you should be able to see them. They sing one song, and then there is silence. An eerie chill lingers, and your dreams are haunted by strange voices. You’ll probably never be able to hear that song again without feeling a chill.
Delaney stared at her ceiling. Ever since that disastrous battle in the early hours of November had she been dreading going out and doing her senshi-ly duties. She didn't know how on Earth that she could. Sure she was the Senshi of Bobcats but even she knew that with attending that battle she'd had her fair dose of "curiosity killed the cat" moments for a lifetime. How she wished that she could still confide in the Mauvian that had awakened her but somewhere along the line Itsuki had fallen out of contact. She had no idea where the little kitten had gone. She worried at the back of her mind that some ill will had befallen Itsuki but with no proof all she had was theories. And theorising never got anyone anywhere.
Rehashing the battle over and over again and the possible outcomes that could have occurred to many that had been present still gave Delaney nightmares. What would have happened if all present had been totally lost to chaos? What then?
It was in a moment of being aware of her surroundings that the teen shot up straight from her supine position. What the actual hell was going on? Once four years ago she'd been awoken by mysterious carollers. And it seemed as if they had returned to her farm once more. Getting out of bed and slipping into a house coat and slippers she prowled silently to each and every window on her floor surreptitiously peeking out from the corners in an effort to at least catch sight of these trespassers. Just like in the past she once again had no luck in actually seeing anyone that was outside, even after turning on the bright lights that accompanied her family's security system upgrade. Yet there was nothing.
Now the music was loud enough to hear the words clearly and Delaney felt a small frisson of fear wash over her. Oh the carol itself was innocent enough. However with how much she'd been reflecting on that battle the words had twisted into an ominous threat.
Even as the strains of the song faded into the night Delaney couldn't easily shake of the sense of foreboding that had accompanied it. Four years ago she had experienced these same sensations but had been able to find sleep, albeit a troubled one, in a timely fashion. This time though sleep was hard to come by. An innocently sung carol - twisted by her mind into something much more ominous - kept Delaney awake until her tired body screamed out for respite. Eventually she fell into an exhausted slumber.Even in her dreams though; not that she could remember them; did the voices continue to 'haunt' her. Whispers, dire warnings, seeing everything she fought to protect turning to ash. Burrowing further under the covers of her duvet, even in her troubled sleep seemed to bring no relief from the unpleasantness that she was experiencing. Waking up would bring very little relief to a weary soldier. When her alarm went off what seemed to be only minutes later did the teen just allow the alarm to sound. At least it was some random pop music from a radio streaming service and not some cursed Christmas carol. Her eyes fluttered open before closing once more as she succumbed to sleep once more.
This time the voices didn't return. But the unsettled feeling remained deep in her subconscious. Something had changed and Delaney wasn't sure she wanted to find out just exactly why this feeling of dread persisted in lingering deep in the back of her mind.
