A Roar In The Rain

Ellie loved the rain. A rainy day for her meant a long walk through the fields beside her house so that she could enjoy the tempestuous weather.

On this one particular day, it was especially wild. She hadn’t seen it quite as bad for about three years, when she was eleven. Ellie never ventured into the moors that marked the edge of her parent’s property; she knew her limitations were the three fields and no further.

The hills in the distance at the top were fog-ridden. The rain seemed to pour in sheets, the strong breeze causing the rain to whip around in a frenzy, soaking anything that dared to walk through it.

As Ellie stood at the edge of the furthest field, she watched as the fog seemed to creep its way down the hills; wispy tendrils seemed to reach out and envelop every part of the wild and rugged-looking moors that lay ahead of it. It was making its way much faster now at an almost unnatural pace as she watched and suddenly slowed to a halt at the edge of the very field she was standing in, the hills and the moors no longer visible. All Ellie saw now was a vast grey wall in front of her.

Ellie was unnerved. The speed with which the fog took to move closer was almost predatory, She took a couple of hasty steps backwards until she was in the middle of the field, no longer at the edge of it and a good few metres away from the sinister fog.

The rain continued it’s onslaught, Ellie feeling the sensation of the storm fully as her light pink hood blew off her head, soaking her instantly. Her eyes grew wide as she heard the thunder. The sudden flash of lightning that came a few seconds later filled her with terror. It was an ominous green light that repetitively flashed until the fog remained with a greenish glow.

Ellie choked back a sob, petrified. Within the fog, a large dark shape moved. It had many arms that seemed to reach forward as a loud roaring could be heard above the noise of the thunder and the pounding of the rain, leaving Ellie losing all feeling in her legs as her knees began to wobble like jelly before she collapsed forwards onto her knees, her hands splashing in the muddy puddles as she caught herself from falling fully into the rain-soaked earth.

She kept her eyes tightly shut as she listened to the roaring growing louder, the green flashes of light somehow bleeding through her eyelids and blinding her slightly. She could hear crashes as the thing moved in the fog, stepping hard in front of her, her heart rate as frantic as her thoughts in that moment.

The rain, the thunder, the wind, the roar. Too much. It was all too much. Ellie opened her eyes and what was peering at her through the fog had her opening her mouth in a silent scream, before her eyes rolled back in her head and she finally fell forward, her mind overwhelmed.

The roar…

Ellie sat bolt upright in bed, warm and dry. She shivered as she could hear the storm outside, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks, a small whimper escaping her lips.

Her mother came bustling through the door, “Oh good, you’re awake. Honey, how many times have we told you not to go playing out in the storms? We found you all covered in mud and you’d fainted. You know you probably tripped up? What if we never went looking for you? Silly girl.”

She enveloped Ellie in a warm embrace, her faint perfume of sandalwood lingering as she pulled away. She cupped Ellie’s cheek and raised her face to look into her daughter’s eyes. “Promise me you won’t go out in the rain again? You had your father and I worried.”

The tears still came down Ellie’s cheeks, the girl too afraid to look towards the window. When she finally spoke, it was barely a whisper. “Did you see anything in the fog? Mum?” Her breathing quickened as she thought of what she had seen, panic taking over as her pupils dilated and fear filled her senses again.

“Ellie. Ellie! Calm down. There was nothing in the fog. Nothing! It was just the wind and rain and lightning. There was nothing else. You’re okay.”

“Mum, it looked at me! It looked right at me!”

Ellie’s mother frowned, her lips pursing a little before speaking. “Honey, I think you had a bad dream. It’s okay.”

She leaned forward and gently pushed Ellie so that she was lying down again, her head landing softly on the fluffy pillow, sinking into the comfort. “Rest. I’ll bring you some food soon, okay. You’re overtired. You’ll be fine.”

Ellie watched her mother walk out of the room, disbelief etched on her features. How had nobody seen? It was so big. It was so loud. She drew up the covers to her face and hid under in the darkness, smelling the fresh scent of a floral fabric softener and inhaling deeply, trying her hardest to block the sight of the eyes that had been looking right at her, dark, deep black orbs.

Under the safety of the duvet, she could hear the storm persisting outside, still as wild as ever, though the sounds of the roar and the thunder were gone. Peeking her head out and glancing towards the window, she saw no green flashing lightning, no black orbs staring at her through the window. Just a grey, dull sky from which fat raindrops fell, being pushed about by a strong wind, smattering her window panes.

She hadn’t imagined it, had she?