WEBVTT 1 00:00:09.919 --> 00:00:12.080 When I was fourteen, my dad would drive me out 2 00:00:12.119 --> 00:00:14.800 to my friend's house to play airsoft in the woods 3 00:00:14.839 --> 00:00:18.920 near Wells, Maine. We would go into the woods behind 4 00:00:18.920 --> 00:00:22.120 the sand pit that was right behind his house, where 5 00:00:22.160 --> 00:00:25.120 we built a pretty decent fort that was surrounded by 6 00:00:25.160 --> 00:00:29.160 a knee high wall. Inside the fort, we'd made fox 7 00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:31.559 holes and we had a fire pit in the middle. 8 00:00:32.079 --> 00:00:34.159 We had a lot of fun spending nights out there 9 00:00:34.200 --> 00:00:37.399 and doing the stupid things that kids do, like shooting 10 00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:40.280 each other with our air guns and throwing CO two 11 00:00:40.439 --> 00:00:44.439 canisters in the fire. On more than one occasion, we 12 00:00:44.479 --> 00:00:47.320 spent the whole night huddled up by the fire. We 13 00:00:47.320 --> 00:00:49.759 were freezing and waiting for the sun to come up 14 00:00:49.799 --> 00:00:53.719 and thaw us out. My friend Greg, he and I 15 00:00:53.799 --> 00:00:57.159 had been at the Sea Cadet program together for several years. 16 00:00:57.759 --> 00:00:59.960 The Sea Cadets is a youth program for the next 17 00:01:00.399 --> 00:01:03.799 that was similar to the Boy's Scouts. He would later 18 00:01:03.880 --> 00:01:07.159 serve several years in the military. He was a no 19 00:01:07.159 --> 00:01:10.040 nonsense person and that kind of guy, and you could 20 00:01:10.040 --> 00:01:13.840 trust your life with him. That's only one reason why 21 00:01:13.879 --> 00:01:16.719 I ended up believing him when he told me this story. 22 00:01:17.959 --> 00:01:20.560 On one of the occasions when we were hanging out 23 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:23.400 in our fort with a few of our friends. We 24 00:01:23.519 --> 00:01:27.560 decided to do a night maneuver operation. At that age, 25 00:01:27.719 --> 00:01:32.120 darkness was our friend, or so we thought. Darkness is 26 00:01:32.280 --> 00:01:35.200 never your friend, though. It creeps over the woods and 27 00:01:35.239 --> 00:01:37.959 it puts an extra blanket of protection on those things 28 00:01:37.959 --> 00:01:41.599 that can hurt you, while leaving mere humans more vulnerable 29 00:01:41.799 --> 00:01:46.319 and in greater danger. During our operation, my squad was 30 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:48.719 in charge of guarding the fort while Greg and his 31 00:01:48.840 --> 00:01:51.840 squad spread out and they went around the sand pit 32 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:54.319 and then circled back to try to lay waste to 33 00:01:54.400 --> 00:01:58.079 our defense. It was just me and my other friend 34 00:01:58.319 --> 00:02:02.000 and we were sitting there waiting for a while. We 35 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:04.280 knew it would take Greg and his squad a little 36 00:02:04.280 --> 00:02:07.280 time to circle around the sand pit. I was in 37 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:10.360 the forward fox hole, but something drew my attention to 38 00:02:10.439 --> 00:02:13.960 the rear. I looked back and I saw what looked 39 00:02:13.960 --> 00:02:17.199 like a human being crawling over the knee wall at 40 00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:20.080 the back of the fort. It was too dark to 41 00:02:20.120 --> 00:02:22.639 make out who it was, but when it stood up, 42 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:26.479 I decided that it couldn't be Greg. It didn't look right. 43 00:02:27.159 --> 00:02:30.520 Its arms were too long for its body, and as 44 00:02:30.560 --> 00:02:35.080 I watched it stood there and silently watched back. I 45 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:39.759 didn't move or speak a word, and neither did this thing. Eventually, 46 00:02:39.800 --> 00:02:42.879 it dropped back down on all fours, and it silently 47 00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:47.000 moved off into the woods. I never once believed it 48 00:02:47.039 --> 00:02:50.439 was Greg. It didn't match his silho wet, and nor 49 00:02:50.479 --> 00:02:52.360 did I think it was any of the other kids 50 00:02:52.360 --> 00:02:55.080 that we were out there with. That's why I never 51 00:02:55.159 --> 00:02:59.439 raised my airgun and shot at it. Several long minutes later, 52 00:02:59.479 --> 00:03:02.199 we heard and his groove walking down the path from 53 00:03:02.199 --> 00:03:05.599 the sand pit. The game continued, and I pushed the 54 00:03:05.680 --> 00:03:09.919 incident to the back of my mind. Some time later, 55 00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:13.479 Greg came to me with a drawing he'd made. It 56 00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:17.479 was a black humanoid figure with what looked like dreadlocks 57 00:03:17.479 --> 00:03:20.680 hanging off the back of its head. He said he'd 58 00:03:20.719 --> 00:03:23.759 seen it in the woods. I didn't believe him, but 59 00:03:23.800 --> 00:03:27.439 Greg wasn't the kind of makeup stories, and besides, I 60 00:03:27.560 --> 00:03:30.680 was reminded of something I'd seen crawling over the knee wall. 61 00:03:31.719 --> 00:03:34.520 How could I deny Greg's story when I had one 62 00:03:34.560 --> 00:03:38.759 of my own. I ask him then if he or 63 00:03:38.840 --> 00:03:41.000 any of the others were trying to pull a prank 64 00:03:41.080 --> 00:03:43.879 on us that night, and he swore that it wasn't 65 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:47.719 him or anyone else in his group. Over the years, 66 00:03:47.759 --> 00:03:51.000 I've asked him several more times, thinking maybe with time 67 00:03:51.080 --> 00:03:53.960 he would admit it was a joke. But he's never 68 00:03:54.120 --> 00:03:58.159 changed his story. Neither has he ever changed his story 69 00:03:58.199 --> 00:04:02.120 about the thing he drew in the picture. I don't 70 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:06.639 know what lives around Wells, Maine. It's an isolated spot 71 00:04:06.759 --> 00:04:09.599 with places that only ten people in one hundred would 72 00:04:09.680 --> 00:04:15.120 ever explore. The forests go for miles. I live in 73 00:04:15.199 --> 00:04:18.040 Michigan now, and I work with the Coastguard. I don't 74 00:04:18.079 --> 00:04:21.199 get back there much, but sometimes late at night, when 75 00:04:21.240 --> 00:04:24.560 I'm alone, I can't help but wonder what I saw 76 00:04:24.759 --> 00:04:27.560 croll over the knee wall that night, and if it 77 00:04:27.680 --> 00:04:30.560 was the same thing Greg had drawn in that picture. 78 00:04:34.079 --> 00:04:36.399 There once was a line from a play written by 79 00:04:36.439 --> 00:04:41.560 poet William Concreve in sixteen ninety seven that states music 80 00:04:41.680 --> 00:04:46.279 hath charms to soothe a savage beast, to soften rocks, 81 00:04:46.360 --> 00:04:50.079 or bend a knotted oak. The phrase ended up in 82 00:04:50.120 --> 00:04:54.519 the movie King Kong. Roughly translated, it means music has 83 00:04:54.519 --> 00:04:59.120 the power to calm even the angriest of beasts, including Bigfoot. 84 00:05:00.560 --> 00:05:03.360 I grew up in the Santa Cruz Mountains in California, 85 00:05:03.480 --> 00:05:06.600 and I've acquired what some would describe as a lifetime 86 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:12.600 of unusual encounters. Some stories involve wild animals, they're easy 87 00:05:12.680 --> 00:05:16.360 to identify, while others are chilling and difficult to put 88 00:05:16.399 --> 00:05:19.639 into words. I often joked that I could write a 89 00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:22.600 fiction story and it would not be as crazy as 90 00:05:22.680 --> 00:05:27.160 my actual life experiences. My family camped a lot when 91 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:31.199 I was a small child, although very rarely in campgrounds. 92 00:05:31.879 --> 00:05:35.120 We packed in and packed out, hopeful to eat fish 93 00:05:35.120 --> 00:05:39.040 and otherwise forage for our meals, but we also came 94 00:05:39.079 --> 00:05:43.399 prepared with rice and other staples. If necessary, We hiked 95 00:05:43.439 --> 00:05:47.120 into places that had fresh water sources clean enough to drink. 96 00:05:48.319 --> 00:05:51.720 I was curious about the Tibetaneti from a very young age, 97 00:05:51.759 --> 00:05:55.399 even before I could read. My father told me about 98 00:05:55.480 --> 00:05:58.439 sasquatch and suggested to me that they are likely the 99 00:05:58.480 --> 00:06:02.879 same species. When I was fourteen, my mother and I 100 00:06:02.959 --> 00:06:05.920 went to a weekend bigfoot seminar hosted by a well 101 00:06:05.959 --> 00:06:10.639 known indigenous elder. In addition, I happened to be seated 102 00:06:10.720 --> 00:06:14.680 next to another popular researcher in the field of cryptid studies, 103 00:06:14.959 --> 00:06:17.240 and I found out that both men had a long 104 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:22.199 standing working relationship. Their stories fascinated me and kind of 105 00:06:22.199 --> 00:06:26.800 colored the way I see cryptids in general. Years later, 106 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:30.519 I was in Sedona, Arizona, enjoying my youngest child's first 107 00:06:30.600 --> 00:06:33.759 camping trip. We were at a place that was really 108 00:06:33.800 --> 00:06:36.680 an RV resort with a tent camping area that was 109 00:06:36.759 --> 00:06:41.720 beautiful and wild. I surveyed our surroundings. There was a 110 00:06:41.720 --> 00:06:46.240 fence that was mostly overgrown with scrub oak. The meadow 111 00:06:46.439 --> 00:06:50.079 on the other side was a vibrant and seemingly untouched green, 112 00:06:50.399 --> 00:06:54.879 flourishing and impressive. I could see a huge living cottonwood 113 00:06:54.879 --> 00:06:57.480 about two hundred yards away, and there was a thick 114 00:06:57.519 --> 00:07:01.079 and wild forested area to the east with remnants of 115 00:07:01.160 --> 00:07:04.800 cave dwellings that remained from a First Nations tribe that 116 00:07:04.879 --> 00:07:09.519 disappeared without a trace centuries ago. Well, we carried on 117 00:07:09.720 --> 00:07:13.560 until about ten PM. My dog, a sharp ee Cody 118 00:07:13.680 --> 00:07:17.519 mix that I named Augie, had run off from the area. 119 00:07:17.639 --> 00:07:20.399 As we were the only tent campers in the place. 120 00:07:21.600 --> 00:07:24.480 I could hear the jingle from her tags, and I 121 00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:27.759 decided to pull out my dejura. Do think that's how 122 00:07:27.800 --> 00:07:31.079 you pronounced that that I had required on one of 123 00:07:31.079 --> 00:07:37.279 my many adventures. Now, de juri, do did youI a doo? 124 00:07:37.480 --> 00:07:39.959 Digi a doo? That's how you said. Digi a doo 125 00:07:40.680 --> 00:07:43.759 is a flute like musical instrument that produces a long, 126 00:07:43.879 --> 00:07:47.560 single note drone. The sound can be high or low 127 00:07:47.639 --> 00:07:50.720 in tone, depending on the length of the instrument. It 128 00:07:50.759 --> 00:07:54.199 was developed by the Aboriginal people in northern Australia one 129 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:57.639 thousand years ago. If you're really good at it, you 130 00:07:57.680 --> 00:08:02.399 can add vocal textures to it, similar to an animal sound, 131 00:08:02.879 --> 00:08:05.079 and it takes a lot of oxygen through the mouth 132 00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:09.120 and knows. They refer to the technique as circular breathing. 133 00:08:10.800 --> 00:08:14.879 I played and suddenly heard Augie running into the campsite 134 00:08:14.879 --> 00:08:18.360 at full tilt. She curled up in a tight ball 135 00:08:18.399 --> 00:08:20.920 at my feet as close as she could get to 136 00:08:21.000 --> 00:08:25.639 the fire. This was abnormal. Something definitely had spooked her, 137 00:08:25.680 --> 00:08:29.399 and she expected me to protect her. I went back 138 00:08:29.399 --> 00:08:33.080 to playing my music. After fifteen minutes, I smell something 139 00:08:33.120 --> 00:08:37.159 that resembled a skunk. Now, usually a skunk scent does 140 00:08:37.200 --> 00:08:40.080 not bother me, but this was offensive and it was 141 00:08:40.120 --> 00:08:44.360 faint on the wind. The odor became stronger and playing 142 00:08:44.440 --> 00:08:49.320 the digiid requires one to breathe in deeply through the nose. 143 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:53.639 Close to midnight, I heard some snapping in the scrub 144 00:08:53.679 --> 00:08:57.240 oak about fifty feet away. Perhaps my music was being 145 00:08:57.279 --> 00:09:00.440 appreciated by whatever was keeping watch on my camp site. 146 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:04.480 Now obliged heartily, but after a while decided fifty feet 147 00:09:04.559 --> 00:09:07.960 was close enough. I moved my kiddo into the tent 148 00:09:08.080 --> 00:09:11.480 and went to extinguish the fire, and a chill ran 149 00:09:11.559 --> 00:09:14.240 through me. So I decided to allow the fire to 150 00:09:14.279 --> 00:09:17.240 burn down, and I went back inside the tent, and 151 00:09:17.240 --> 00:09:20.080 I zumped only the mosquito netting so I could keep 152 00:09:20.120 --> 00:09:23.360 an eye on the flames well. I lie down and 153 00:09:23.480 --> 00:09:26.639 closed my eyes, and at that moment I became aware 154 00:09:26.679 --> 00:09:29.559 of a distant drum beat with a rhythm resembling the 155 00:09:29.600 --> 00:09:33.639 steady pulse of a heartbeat. It was emanating from across 156 00:09:33.720 --> 00:09:36.519 the meadow, and the drum beat did not waver or 157 00:09:36.559 --> 00:09:40.960 stop until sunrise, when it ended. I have never known 158 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:43.519 a human to keep a simple beat for four or 159 00:09:43.559 --> 00:09:47.039 five hours without a pause or a break. I felt 160 00:09:47.039 --> 00:09:49.279 like it was in response to the music that I 161 00:09:49.320 --> 00:09:52.840 had offered earlier. It didn't occur to me what I 162 00:09:52.919 --> 00:09:56.519 had experienced that night until I documented it many weeks 163 00:09:56.600 --> 00:09:59.879 later in my journal, writing it was like a skunk, 164 00:10:00.120 --> 00:10:03.960 but predatory. I looked at my sentence and then drew 165 00:10:03.960 --> 00:10:06.480 an arrow down to the bottom of the page and wrote, 166 00:10:06.480 --> 00:10:13.120 in big letters, skunk ape. Veronica Amber had no recollection 167 00:10:13.279 --> 00:10:17.320 of her first encounter with the wisps. They came as 168 00:10:17.399 --> 00:10:22.559 inconspicuous and unexpected, like flurries of indoored dust that float 169 00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:26.399 and fly when bathed by a sheen of sunlight. At 170 00:10:26.399 --> 00:10:30.960 the beginning of their residence at three point fifteen Copacitic Lane, 171 00:10:31.200 --> 00:10:34.759 just before their street transitioned into the main road in town. 172 00:10:35.440 --> 00:10:38.279 Her home knew a time when it was vacant of 173 00:10:38.320 --> 00:10:41.720 the wisps, and the only specters filling the inside of 174 00:10:41.759 --> 00:10:44.720 their projections from the old films that her father would 175 00:10:44.799 --> 00:10:49.320 display on dark velvet walls of the house. The walls 176 00:10:49.320 --> 00:10:52.480 of their victorian used to hold no haunting tendrils of 177 00:10:52.519 --> 00:10:56.919 their existence. The hallways heard no shrills or cuttle walls 178 00:10:57.000 --> 00:11:00.879 from a life silenced by death, and the marble floor 179 00:11:00.919 --> 00:11:03.799 of their historic home at one point had less of 180 00:11:03.840 --> 00:11:07.919 a tendency to send shivers up one's another regions and 181 00:11:08.000 --> 00:11:13.399 into the spine. The wisps were invisible inhabitants of their home, 182 00:11:13.840 --> 00:11:16.080 but to the rest of the world they were simply 183 00:11:16.120 --> 00:11:21.679 called ghosts. Veronica Amber's acquaintance with them was far from 184 00:11:21.679 --> 00:11:25.720 the horror filled nonsense she'd read about in books and 185 00:11:25.960 --> 00:11:29.120 watched in movies. For the more the whists made themselves 186 00:11:29.159 --> 00:11:32.720 known to her, the more annoyed she became. It seemed 187 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:36.080 they were always around, causing mischief, popping out at the 188 00:11:36.080 --> 00:11:40.679 most inconvenient times, and filling her ears with macabre groans 189 00:11:40.799 --> 00:11:44.080 in the dark in an attempt to inflict fear into 190 00:11:44.120 --> 00:11:46.879 her soul when she only wanted to have a good 191 00:11:46.960 --> 00:11:50.759 night's sleep, and since then she had scarcely known a 192 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:56.200 moment's peace. Veronica Amber, or Vam as she liked to 193 00:11:56.240 --> 00:11:59.960 be called, awoke on Halloween morning with an abrupt opening 194 00:12:00.159 --> 00:12:02.879 of her eyes. She lay on her back in her 195 00:12:02.879 --> 00:12:06.559 attic room, watching the warmth of the dawning sun changed 196 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:10.399 the color of her slanted ceiling. She heard a shuffling 197 00:12:10.440 --> 00:12:12.759 of feet, moved her eyes to the foot of the bed, 198 00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:16.759 and there stood a lady Wisp looking at her with 199 00:12:16.840 --> 00:12:20.480 a cocked head, her spaghetti strands of hair falling on 200 00:12:20.559 --> 00:12:24.320 to a ghostly shoulder where the clavical and humorous were 201 00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:31.159 exposed underneath decayed and stretched out torn skin. This particular 202 00:12:31.279 --> 00:12:34.720 wisp never bothered Vam like the others did, but the 203 00:12:34.759 --> 00:12:38.360 gaze she gave her always made her feel uncomfortable because 204 00:12:38.360 --> 00:12:41.240 she knew the apparition was trying to say something through 205 00:12:41.279 --> 00:12:45.879 those glassy, unblinking eyes. Perhaps it was due to the 206 00:12:45.960 --> 00:12:49.759 dislocated jaw and missing tongue that kept her from saying 207 00:12:49.799 --> 00:12:53.399 what was on her mind, but regardless, Vam had no 208 00:12:53.559 --> 00:12:56.240 time to feel sorry for something that had the same 209 00:12:56.320 --> 00:13:01.360 design as a fart in the wind. It's Halloween today, 210 00:13:01.679 --> 00:13:05.559 Paprika Vam said, lifting her head from the pillow and 211 00:13:05.679 --> 00:13:08.720 using her elbows to hold her up as she faced 212 00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:13.279 the wisp. A Vam named all the wisps after spices, 213 00:13:13.720 --> 00:13:18.399 and Paprika happened to fit this specific one. Not only that, 214 00:13:18.559 --> 00:13:21.759 but it's my last time as host now that I'm eighteen. 215 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:27.720 After this, I'm relieved of all duties. Vam gave a 216 00:13:27.799 --> 00:13:30.960 quick stretched and moved her body into a sitting position 217 00:13:31.080 --> 00:13:33.840 on the side of her bed. She felt the moist 218 00:13:33.919 --> 00:13:37.200 hot fogs around her feet, and when she looked down, 219 00:13:37.279 --> 00:13:40.440 she glanced at the open mouth of a Regano, an 220 00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:44.519 older Wisp who was bodyless and used his old man 221 00:13:44.759 --> 00:13:49.519 head to roll around their home. His gurgly, foaming mouth 222 00:13:49.759 --> 00:13:52.759 was stretched wide in an expression that would make any 223 00:13:52.799 --> 00:13:57.919 normal humans soil themselves in fright. His cracky lips clung 224 00:13:58.000 --> 00:14:03.240 around Vam's feet, leaving strands of ghostly saliva on her ankles. 225 00:14:04.159 --> 00:14:06.919 Fam rolled her eyes and wiggled her toes, visible through 226 00:14:06.960 --> 00:14:09.960 the rotted eyelids of his head, and she kicked him, 227 00:14:10.080 --> 00:14:15.440 making him vanish into nothing. You're disgusting, she muttered, moving 228 00:14:15.480 --> 00:14:20.879 toward the bathroom. Before she reached the toilet, time, a 229 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:24.799 young boy Whisp who looked about six or seven, popped 230 00:14:24.840 --> 00:14:28.679 up from the floor and shrieked like a banshee. She 231 00:14:28.879 --> 00:14:32.360 gasped more from the suddenness of it than from fright, 232 00:14:32.519 --> 00:14:36.159 as his face collided into hers, and before she had 233 00:14:36.159 --> 00:14:40.360 a moment to swat him away, he disappeared. Time was 234 00:14:40.399 --> 00:14:43.159 the one who bothered her the most, and as many 235 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:47.000 endeavors to frighten her and failing to do so, it 236 00:14:47.120 --> 00:14:51.279 made him the one she also felt closest to, almost 237 00:14:51.320 --> 00:14:54.480 like a little annoying brother, but with maggots crawling out 238 00:14:54.519 --> 00:14:58.080 of his nose and ears. It was in the alone 239 00:14:58.120 --> 00:15:01.000 hours of the morning that Vam fell the most connected 240 00:15:01.000 --> 00:15:04.879 to the house. Her parents, who taught night classes at 241 00:15:05.000 --> 00:15:08.919 Nickt University, remained asleep for the majority of the day, 242 00:15:09.440 --> 00:15:11.519 and it was in their solitude that she learned to 243 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:15.120 speak to the house. Just one touch to a chimney 244 00:15:15.159 --> 00:15:17.559 stone or a beam of wood was enough for the 245 00:15:17.600 --> 00:15:20.480 house to remind and speak to her about how it 246 00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:24.840 was before their wisps had occupied the space. She would 247 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:27.679 get images of her mother and father, and their pale 248 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:32.399 faces contrasted with the black exterior of the home. The 249 00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:37.440 oldest and most abandoned, neglected house on Copaestic Lane was 250 00:15:37.480 --> 00:15:42.360 the one they had imprinted on. Could it be genetics, 251 00:15:42.679 --> 00:15:47.200 her father, Professor Victor Ambrose Pror, asked one night during 252 00:15:47.279 --> 00:15:51.080 dinner over his stake Flombay, many years ago, when Vam 253 00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:56.080 had confided in him about the wisps. When we adopted you, 254 00:15:56.159 --> 00:15:58.440 we knew at some point your health would become a 255 00:15:58.519 --> 00:16:02.080 source of worry for us. He said, well, that is 256 00:16:02.080 --> 00:16:04.919 a possibility, my dear, but we must also not reule 257 00:16:04.960 --> 00:16:09.240 out the screen time. Her mother, doctor Vivian Amelia Pryor, 258 00:16:09.399 --> 00:16:13.399 had said, placing a cold, pale hand on Vam's forehead. 259 00:16:14.200 --> 00:16:16.799 That new iPad we got you for Christmas has become 260 00:16:16.840 --> 00:16:19.559 a bit of an addiction for you, darling. Are you 261 00:16:19.639 --> 00:16:24.639 sure you aren't hallucinating these images? A young Vam had 262 00:16:24.679 --> 00:16:28.480 smiled at them, half lovingly and half disappointed that her 263 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:33.480 parents couldn't see the wisps, She shook her head. No, mother, 264 00:16:33.639 --> 00:16:37.159 I'm not imagining them. Theyre as real as you and 265 00:16:37.320 --> 00:16:40.320 I father. I can touch them, I can smell them, 266 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:44.519 but when I try to scream, they disappear. At this point, 267 00:16:44.559 --> 00:16:47.720 being scared isn't an option. I just want them to 268 00:16:47.799 --> 00:16:53.279 leave me alone. Her mother's plum lipstick stained mouth formed 269 00:16:53.279 --> 00:16:57.279 a sympathetic frown. I'm so sorry, dearest, I wish there 270 00:16:57.360 --> 00:16:59.360 was something we could do to make it go away. 271 00:17:01.039 --> 00:17:04.279 That had been many years ago, and since then numerous 272 00:17:04.319 --> 00:17:08.039 wisps had appeared to her, as real and as vexatious 273 00:17:08.079 --> 00:17:11.640 as ever, for better or for worse, but not for long. 274 00:17:12.279 --> 00:17:16.000 Comes springtime, when Van was due to graduate, she'd leave 275 00:17:16.039 --> 00:17:19.480 her home, seething with wisps, to start a new life 276 00:17:19.920 --> 00:17:23.160 and leave the nest, a phrase her father despised and 277 00:17:23.200 --> 00:17:28.279 regarded with contempt. Pishposh, he always said when that phrase 278 00:17:28.400 --> 00:17:31.920 was uttered. We aren't eagles, for goodness' sake, So I 279 00:17:31.960 --> 00:17:35.920 want no more talk about leaving nest and whatnot. Now, Vam, 280 00:17:35.960 --> 00:17:38.559 my darling, I couldn't be prouder of the person that 281 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:41.119 you become and the one you are yet to be. 282 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:45.119 And like any father, I'm disconsolate at the idea of 283 00:17:45.279 --> 00:17:49.000 seeing you go, but exhilarated at the prospects that await you. 284 00:17:49.839 --> 00:17:52.680 Not flesh of our flesh, nor blood of our blood, 285 00:17:52.720 --> 00:17:56.039 but once you were handed into our arms, the darling 286 00:17:56.160 --> 00:17:59.240 child with the eyes as dark as coal, who appeared 287 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:03.279 to us as a stranger, suddenly became the most beloved daughter. 288 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:08.680 A most beloved daughter rang in Vam's head, and she 289 00:18:08.839 --> 00:18:13.799 dressed herself for the day. In the mirror, a young girl, Wisp, 290 00:18:13.960 --> 00:18:19.359 whom Vam had named Coriander, manifested herself beside Vam. She 291 00:18:19.400 --> 00:18:21.720 opened her mouth and let out a shrill scream that 292 00:18:21.839 --> 00:18:25.960 penetrated the ear drums with a searing intensity, and Vam 293 00:18:26.079 --> 00:18:29.519 covered her ears, but ignored her, and quickly placing a 294 00:18:29.559 --> 00:18:32.400 clip on her hair before making her way downstairs to 295 00:18:32.400 --> 00:18:37.880 finish the preparation for the night's Halloween party. A most 296 00:18:38.000 --> 00:18:41.799 beloved daughter, she thought to herself again, and a most 297 00:18:41.799 --> 00:18:45.599 beloved host. And when Vam was a young girl, shortly 298 00:18:45.640 --> 00:18:48.720 after the Priors had adopted her, she was given the 299 00:18:48.759 --> 00:18:53.000 responsibility of hosting a Halloween evening in their home. Mommy 300 00:18:53.039 --> 00:18:56.319 and Daddy have to sleep, dearest, and can only join 301 00:18:56.400 --> 00:18:59.240 later in the evening. Once we awaken, who will be 302 00:18:59.279 --> 00:19:02.119 there to entertain? Ain't our guest? Well, that is where 303 00:19:02.160 --> 00:19:05.920 you come in, said her mother. But I'm only a child, 304 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:09.680 Vam had objected, Well, that works to our advantage, darling, 305 00:19:09.880 --> 00:19:12.839 her mother had said, kneeling to her level and pressing 306 00:19:12.839 --> 00:19:16.640 her pale forehead to Vams, they are more likely to 307 00:19:16.680 --> 00:19:21.720 trust you, and so they did. Every Halloween evening, the 308 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:25.359 Priors would appoint Vam to welcome guests and passing trigger 309 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:29.319 treats to their home. At the beginning, guests would question 310 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:32.000 her on the whereabouts of her parents, to which Vam 311 00:19:32.039 --> 00:19:35.279 would reply, no worries, they are resting and we'll be 312 00:19:35.400 --> 00:19:39.720 with you shortly for dinner. In the kitchen, Vam started 313 00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:43.920 the ord'eures baked brye made to look like mommy, and 314 00:19:44.000 --> 00:19:47.480 she's in cracker platter, with bat and Jack o' lantern cutouts, 315 00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:51.079 a bowl of checks mix and candy for a monster munch, 316 00:19:51.119 --> 00:19:54.640 and guacamole with vegetables arranged to look like the face 317 00:19:54.680 --> 00:19:57.759 of a witch. It was all coming together, and it 318 00:19:57.880 --> 00:20:02.160 was still hours to go until lunch time. By the 319 00:20:02.200 --> 00:20:05.079 time it was sundown, Vam had decorated and set the 320 00:20:05.119 --> 00:20:08.200 food in the dining room. A meat loaf shaped to 321 00:20:08.279 --> 00:20:11.440 resemble the anatomy of a human body was left cooling 322 00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:14.839 on the counter when she went upstairs to change, and 323 00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:17.960 she opted for a simple black dress that hugged her 324 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:21.880 slender frame. And putting on the final touches of her makeup, 325 00:20:22.359 --> 00:20:25.720 she heard a wheezing, echoey sound behind the curtain of 326 00:20:25.799 --> 00:20:30.640 her shower. Pushing the curtain back, Time jumped at her, 327 00:20:30.759 --> 00:20:33.519 squealing and laughing. As she went through her body and 328 00:20:33.640 --> 00:20:38.519 exited out the bathroom door, another wisp, A young looking 329 00:20:38.559 --> 00:20:42.480 male around Vam's age, stood staring at her underneath the showerhead. 330 00:20:43.119 --> 00:20:46.640 A harsh cut to the throat revealed a sliced trachea. 331 00:20:47.920 --> 00:20:50.680 Vam sighed and crossed her arms. Do you think you 332 00:20:50.759 --> 00:20:53.960 can keep it down, Nutmeg? Our guests are due to 333 00:20:54.079 --> 00:20:58.960 arrive soon, and the wheezing is distracting. Nutmeg said nothing 334 00:20:59.079 --> 00:21:03.160 but nodded, watching Vam roll her tube of lipstick back in. 335 00:21:04.119 --> 00:21:07.039 You're lucky. You're a handsome one, even more of a looker. 336 00:21:07.119 --> 00:21:10.559 Before Vam turned back to him, her hand on the 337 00:21:10.640 --> 00:21:13.960 light switch of the bathroom. You know, she used her 338 00:21:13.960 --> 00:21:17.880 index finger to swipe under her throat in a slashing manner. 339 00:21:19.759 --> 00:21:22.440 The sound of the doorbell below made Vam return to 340 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:25.640 her responsibilities, and with a clap of her hand, she 341 00:21:25.759 --> 00:21:28.759 turned off the light and clambered down the stairs, remembering 342 00:21:28.799 --> 00:21:33.039 the meat loaf and placing it on the table. Before 343 00:21:33.079 --> 00:21:36.400 reaching the entrance, she stopped in the fourier, where above 344 00:21:36.440 --> 00:21:39.559 the grinning candlelight Jack o' lantern hung pictures of the 345 00:21:39.599 --> 00:21:44.359 hosts that came before her, The other priors, her sisters, 346 00:21:45.039 --> 00:21:48.440 the sisters she had never met, the sisters who had 347 00:21:48.519 --> 00:21:50.880 left to start a new life at eighteen once the 348 00:21:50.960 --> 00:21:55.000 new host was chosen, just like she would in the springtime, 349 00:21:56.039 --> 00:21:58.839 The sisters who had taken the same val their parents 350 00:21:58.839 --> 00:22:02.079 had taken when they were each adopted into the family. 351 00:22:02.920 --> 00:22:04.920 We will take care of you if you will take 352 00:22:04.960 --> 00:22:08.440 care of us, they had said. None of the previous 353 00:22:08.519 --> 00:22:12.039 prior daughters had been hosts at three point fifteen Copestic 354 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:16.200 Lane when their nomadic parents staked a claim on the property. 355 00:22:16.440 --> 00:22:20.079 Vam had been the first one. With each passing year 356 00:22:20.079 --> 00:22:23.079 of Vam's life, she was slowly coming to terms with 357 00:22:23.200 --> 00:22:26.119 the truth about why the wisps were part of their 358 00:22:26.200 --> 00:22:30.519 home and why they were visible only to her. Vam 359 00:22:30.599 --> 00:22:34.279 doesn't remember her first encounter with a wisp, but she 360 00:22:34.359 --> 00:22:39.160 remembers when Peperika, who in her previous life was called Monica, 361 00:22:39.559 --> 00:22:42.799 entered in her fleshly human form as a guest in 362 00:22:42.839 --> 00:22:47.200 their home. And Oregano, who was once Mister Franks her 363 00:22:47.200 --> 00:22:51.440 English teacher time, used to be Spencer, a classmate she 364 00:22:51.480 --> 00:22:54.240 would play with in elementary school, and was the first 365 00:22:54.279 --> 00:22:57.960 guest she entertained in her first year as a host. 366 00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:02.680 Nutmeg was a package delivery worker who thought Vam looked 367 00:23:02.720 --> 00:23:04.920 rather pretty standing on the porch of her house in 368 00:23:04.960 --> 00:23:08.599 her black dress. Last Halloween. He went up the steps 369 00:23:08.640 --> 00:23:12.319 to introduce himself and entered, and unbeknownst to him that 370 00:23:12.440 --> 00:23:17.440 he would not be coming back out. The whiffs were 371 00:23:17.480 --> 00:23:20.559 who they were because they had all made the decision 372 00:23:20.720 --> 00:23:25.200 to be guests at three point fifteen Copacetic Lane. What 373 00:23:25.400 --> 00:23:28.799 bound them together other than death was their decision to 374 00:23:28.920 --> 00:23:33.039 trust Vam. Another ring of the doorbell sounded in the 375 00:23:33.119 --> 00:23:39.079 furyer coming, Vam called out, straightening her dress. Opening the door, 376 00:23:39.160 --> 00:23:41.920 she came face to face with a group of tricker treaders, 377 00:23:42.079 --> 00:23:46.640 young and old, friend groups and families. No one wanted 378 00:23:46.640 --> 00:23:49.000 to miss out on the opportunity to sneak a peek 379 00:23:49.000 --> 00:23:52.200 inside the old, creepy Victorian house that sat like a 380 00:23:52.319 --> 00:23:58.240 tempting siren on Copastic Lane. Hello, she exclaimed, putting on 381 00:23:58.319 --> 00:24:02.319 an unnaturally inviting as she opened the door. We've got 382 00:24:02.400 --> 00:24:04.920 candy for your buckets, and if you'd like to stay, 383 00:24:05.240 --> 00:24:08.160 we have snacks and food. We hope you can join 384 00:24:08.240 --> 00:24:12.920 us for a while this evening. Stepping aside, she allowed 385 00:24:12.920 --> 00:24:15.759 the group of guests to walk into the fourrier, directing 386 00:24:15.759 --> 00:24:18.400 them with her arm toward the parlor in the formal 387 00:24:18.519 --> 00:24:23.519 dining room. A murmur of excitement washed over the crowd, 388 00:24:23.559 --> 00:24:26.200 and they stepped over each other and pushed bodies away 389 00:24:26.279 --> 00:24:29.400 to be the first one to explore the house, and 390 00:24:29.480 --> 00:24:32.359 within a few minutes the parlor was full of guests 391 00:24:32.359 --> 00:24:36.920 socializing with each other, stuffing their faces with Vams snacks 392 00:24:36.960 --> 00:24:40.880 and cooked meals and taking pictures with their phones of 393 00:24:40.920 --> 00:24:44.319 the interior of the house and ooing and eyeing like 394 00:24:44.480 --> 00:24:49.200 museum lovers. Vam stood and watched the energy that filled 395 00:24:49.200 --> 00:24:52.440 the room, and with no friends or relatives to invite over, 396 00:24:52.880 --> 00:24:55.599 the prior house was for the most part empty and 397 00:24:55.640 --> 00:24:59.680 deprived of visitors. Halloween night was the only time when 398 00:24:59.720 --> 00:25:05.559 people wilfully invited themselves over without arousing suspicion. Outsiders who 399 00:25:05.799 --> 00:25:08.160 saw the crowd beckoning to the front door of the 400 00:25:08.200 --> 00:25:11.279 prior house didn't have to think twice about coming to 401 00:25:11.400 --> 00:25:15.400