Penelope was minding her own business one Saturday afternoon. The sun started to set on a fine Spring day. Her mom’s pot roast smell drifted through the air. Bird’s chirping their final chirp. The young girl was frolicing in her room alongside her brand new American girl doll. She set the doll on her rocking chair to have a tea party. Penelope sat criss-cross applesauce on the pink princess bed.

“Mom’s been acting weird lately,” she said to the doll. The doll responded with silence. Wind from outside started to pick up.

“Why aren’t you answering me!” the girl stated repeatedly with her temper rising. From anger she knocked down the rocking chair. Penelope’s brand new American Girl Doll fell and it’s glass eyes shattered into a thousand pieces.

Darkness then devoured the cozy cottage. Owl’s outside filled the girl with fear. She heard knocking so she checked window but found nothing. Tree branches outside swayed back and forth. Swish, branches rubbed up against the window. Penelope checked the window again to find nothing but thin air. The remains of her other dolls seemed to stare at her with their glass eyes. Lights inside started to flicker leaving the room in darkness for a split second.

“Penelope! Come down for dinner!” Mom howled up to her from downstairs. The voice echoed through their house.

Penelope yelled back, “Ok!” She jumped off the bed onto her bland rug. As the small feet skimmed the ragged rug, a cold hand grabbed her from under the bed. A loud THUMP roamed the house as she bonked head first on hard ground knocking Penelope unconscious.

When she woke up, her mom was next to her under the bed. Chills went down both of their spines. Suddenly, stairs started to creak from below them.