Summer Camp Campfire Stories Closed

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Kazuo would make his way down to the campfire, curious about this scary story telling that had been announced. What kind fo stories would they tell? What did they consider scary? Could it compare to the reality that was attending Hagwarts? What could possibly be scarier than creepy undead monsters beneath the floorboards? Or shadows that attacked people? Perched askew atop his head was a fox mask and he took a moment to look around at the other students gathered together as he found an empty spot to sit. There were quite a few students already gathered and sharing stories, the kind of urban legends and camp ghost stories that he had expected. A few of the students chose to tell some stories that he couldn’t help but to think were too true. Then there was Arjan… his story was outright ridiculous and Kazuo had to hide his smile behind his hand. They were interesting nonetheless so he sat quietly and listened, considering whether or not he had a story to offer.

Finally after some time and a lull he stood and cleared his throat to get the other students’ attention. “I have an old story from Japanese mythology. It is about a mujina - a badger spirit. On the Asakusa Road in Tokyo, there is a slope called Kii-no-kuni-zaka. On one side of this slope there is an ancient moat, deep and very wide, with high green banks rising up to the palace gardens. On the other side of the road are the walls of the Imperial palace. Before the modern era, this neighbourhood was very lonesome after dark and late travellers would go miles out of their way rather than walk there alone after sunset. All because of a mujina who used to walk there.”

He began his story, staring into the fire as he spoke solemnly, describing the setting. That it was far away in Tokyo didn’t matter, all they needed to know was that this was a long patch of dark road where a trickster yokai liked to walk. “The last man to see the mujina was a merchant who was hurrying up the slope late at night, making his way home when he came upon a woman crouching by the moat alone and weeping bitterly. He was afraid that she was going to drown herself so he stopped to offer her assistance. ‘Honorable lady!’ He called to her as he approached, noting that she appeared to be a slight and graceful person, well-dressed with her hair arranged in the manner of a young girl from a good family. ‘Honorable lady do not cry! Tell me what is troubling you and if there is any way I can help you, I will!’ The girl continued to weep, hiding her face from him with one of her long sleeves. He tried again, pleading gently with her. ‘This is no place for a young lady. Please let me help you.’ The girl stood, still crying into her sleeve with her back to him. He placed a gentle hand upon her shoulder and continued to try to coax her. ‘Honorable lady, listen to me for just a moment. Then the girl turned around and dropped her sleeve, stroking her face with her hand. The man saw that she had no eyes or nose or mouth!

He screamed and fled from the mujina, running up the slope as fast as he could, in the darkness, until he saw a lantern, so far away that it looked like the gleam of a firefly. He ran toward it, discovering that it was the lamp of a soba seller who had set up his stand. He collapsed at the feet of the soba seller, panting and crying out ’Ah! Ah! Ah!’

’What is the matter? Did someone hurt you?’ Asked the soba seller in confusion. The merchant shook his head.

’No, no one has hurt me, only scared me. I saw a woman by the moat! And she showed me… Ah! I cannot tell you what she showed me!’

’Was it anything like this that she showed you?’ Asked the soba seller, stroking his own face, which became as smooth as an egg and at the same time… the light went out.”

Kazuo didn’t know if it really counted as a scary story but it was a trickster’s story and he was very fond of those so he finished the tale with a smirk on his lips. “Be careful of badgers when you are walking alone at night…” He returned to his seat, reaching for a few marshmallows to roast while waiting for the next story to be told.

@The Narrator

Interacting with: @Evelynn Decipio

Date: August 11th, 2021 Outfit Sweater | Shorts | Boots

───Out of the dancing light of the flames she would appear; a girl as lovely as twinkling night sky that cast starlight down upon them. She seemed to sew beauty in her every movement, weaving it into the otherwise dull world around her. She must have been at least a year older than her because Winnie didn't recognize her. It took her a moment to realize the redhead was talking to her and the Ravenclaw felt breathless. A flush crept up her face, changing the colour of her cheeks to a rosy hue.

"M-Me?" She managed to ask, although her voice felt meek when it left her throat. She cleared it and tried again, "I did, yes... I... I enjoy writing poems." She admitted, the corners of her lips curling to offer the girl a sheepish smile. "The creature in my story is based on two different creatures, actually. The first is from indigenous North American folklore, although I took some artistic liberties admittedly, which is why I didn't specifically name the creature. They are called 'wendigos'. They are evil spirits that possess people and can encourage them to murder and cannibalize other humans. Some believe that when a Wendigo devours another human, it grows in size which means its hunger can never be sated. As interested as that could have been, I went with the former rendition.” Lore and myths were always fun to explore, and with so many different cultures all around the world, there never seemed to be a lack of material to read.

"The second is less of a creature and more of an insect. Have you heard of assassin bugs? There's a specific kind called the Acanthaspis Petax, and as they kill their victims they take trophies from their bodies and use it to camouflage themselves. So when I said the creature would wear its victim's face, I meant quite literally." Despite the grim conversation, Winnie's eyes grew large with excitement. Despite her... Social shortcomings and lack of practical logic, she enjoyed reading and researching various topics. Aside from Warren, books were her only friend as a child. Being able to share the random knowledge she had collected over the years was quite exciting for her.

The offered handshake and introduction were gladly accepted by the Ravenclaw, her smile widened as she reached out to accept her hand. "I'm Winnie, Winnie Harper. I'm a Hogwarts student too! A second-year Ravenclaw." Despite Evelynn's introduction, there was an air of familiarity to her. Winnie felt as if she had seen her before, but the question of when and where was echoing around her mind. She remembered quite suddenly, her posture straightening as she gripped the sleeves of her own sweater excitedly. "You're on the Quidditch team, right?" It was no wonder the girl had stolen the breath from her lungs upon first sight, she had seen her soaring through the sky!

The theme of the night was meant to be horror stories, but it would appear a Russian student would take the opportunity to tell the rest of the camp of her troubles with Hogwarts. Winnie raised a brow as she explained the situation. Sure, it sounded awful in itself, being 'poisoned' by punch, but it most certainly wasn't Hogwarts' fault, nor had they targeted students from visiting schools. If the punch had been spiked, it was equally likely that all students would eventually take a drink. It would seem the girl had formed her own conspiracy theory and Winnie wasn't interested in arguing with her. A conversation with any Hogwarts student was likely to clear things up. She did feel sorry for the girl nonetheless, the story she told was unsettling, and she did suppose the professors hadn’t said anything about true stories. "The ball sounds like it was... Interesting." She mumbled.

Another story was told by a girl she recognized because they were in the same year together. A Hufflepuff, if she remembered correctly. She told a tale that seemed to be based on real-life events. The Ravenclaw was aware that there was a large population of werewolves at Hogwarts, but the idea of being chased down at such a young age was certainly devastating. Her heart went out to the girl.

Then Winnie's newest friend decided it was her turn to tell a story. The eagle couldn't have been more delighted. She pushed herself towards the edge of her seat, leaning in to listen intently to the girl's every word. The story's buildup was perfect, adding just the right amount of suspense to draw the audience in and leave them wanting more. With such detail, Winnie could easily picture herself in the protagonist's place. A chill ran up her spine, leaving a trail of goosebumps along her pale skin. She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned in closer to the crackling fire. The ending was perfect, leaving a mystery for the listener to decipher should they desire to do so, and Winnie was left staring over at the redhead.

"Evelyn... That was an amazing story." Her blue eyes flickered down to the journal sitting in her lap and then back up to the girl's face. "You have brawn and a talent for the creative arts! That is very admirable." She admitted, releasing a sigh that seemed to carry whispers of the redhead's own dreams; the desire to be just like her upper-classman. "It was wonderful. I enjoyed the suspenseful build-up. Ghosts being real doesn't make it any less scary. If anything it perhaps makes it scarier because there are so many possibilities of who, or what could be hiding up there. Also, if the character is a muggle they would have no way of knowing about magical beings, which includes ghosts. If you think about it, the use of magical beings in stories could be very frightening considering they don't really have a way of defending themselves through magical means."