Mansion Of The Dead

Family Tradition

As time passes, the mansion is deteriorating fast due to lack of care and people are forgetting about its tale, but one family, which lives in the small town beside the forest where it stands, keeps their tradition of telling the tale of the mansion. This family is well-known in believing and telling tales, even those that are of the weirdest sort. Their family name is Wiyelt and they live in a tiny house with a simple and content lifestyle. They are not rich and they have a lot of family problems due to the fact that their family grows lesser and lesser every year. Their relatives and family members are dying at a fast rate, and this greatly disturbs their peace. They all don't know the cause of this, but they are all scared of losing their lives.

Soon, because of their problem, this family had found themselves with only two members left. They were both confused and did not know what to do, for certainly one of them or even both of them could die soon. The two remaining members were a young ten year-old boy named Victor, and his grandmother, Nympha, which Victor likes to call as Grandma Lala.

They live their lives not knowing what would happen next or what would they become tomorrow, yet they strive to survive. They both get financial support every month from the local government as Victor's Grandma is a retired public school teacher; this support is the only source of income they rely on, for Victor was too young and Grandma Nympha or Lala was too old to work.

As a result of them being the two family members left, the two share a really close bond. Grandma Lala was the one who raised Victor, even from when he was a young child, so it's no doubt if Victor thinks of Grandma Lala as his mom, and loves her so much.

They both live in the north side of the town, near the forest. The two rely on each other a lot, as the both of them could do what the other could not, for example, Victor could carry buckets of water from the near well and Grandma Lala could cook their meals. Their days were already a routine of work, and they both are trying their best to survive day by day.

One day, they were both about to go to sleep when Victor just couldn't sleep no matter how much he tried. So, he went to his grandma's bed across the room to ask her for a bedtime story, which is guaranteed to make him sleep.

"Lala?" he endearingly askes as he carefully takes light steps to go to Grandma Lala's bed.

"Are you already asleep? Can you please tell me a tale? I can't seem to sleep." He continues, maintaining his quiet tone, hoping Grandma Lala would still be awake.

"Ah, child, you really like the stories I tell ya, don't ya?" She answers with a giggle while she opens her dim and drowsy eyes.

Victor nodded with a smile as a response. They both went off to Victor's bed. Victor held his grandmother's hand to lead her, as she might stumble for she couldn't see that well. They reached his bed and his grandmother tucked him in bed. She sat at his side, and cleared her throat before telling her awaited tale.

"Well, let me tell you about, hmm, what have I not told you yet? It seems like I've told you everything," She says as she searches her mind for an interesting and untold tale

"Ah! I got one. Now get comfortable and get ready to sleep." She says as she strokes Victor's dark brown hair and adjusts Victor's blanket and pillows.

"This one is about the mansion of the dead. A mansion in the middle of the woods, that is known to look completely wrecked at day, but appears to be restored to its former beauty at night. People say that at night, it glows with a thousand bright lights, just like the stars of the dark starry night sky..."

"Where is this mansion, lala?" Victor blurts out before Grandma Lala could continue.

"It's... Well, I think it's better off unknown." She responds with a concerned look, though she quickly tried to hide this by a smile.

"Where were we, dear?" She questions so that she could continue and soon she was able to tell the whole tale to the curious Victor.

Victor, as a young boy, was fascinated by Grandma Lala's tale, so much that he couldn't stop thinking where the mansion would be located.

Soon, Grandma Lala had finished telling the tale. She checked if Victor was asleep already and kissed Victor in the forehead to whisper goodnight. She tucked the blankets in once again and was about to stand up when Victor got hold of her arm. This shocked her but she quickly realized it was Victor so she didn't really get frightened.

"Please, tell me where this mansion is, Lala." Victor whispered in a drowsy tone as his hand was still fastened to Grandma Lala's arm.

"I'll tell you tomorrow, okay?" She assures Victor and pats his head.

Only then did Victor let go of her hand and went to sleep. Soon after Victor fell asleep, and dreamt a dream that was somehow like the tale his Grandma told him. In his dream, he saw a faint view of the mansion just like how he envisioned it, but as the dream lasted, his view got clearer and clearer. Then he realized that it was a sunset, with the sun's golden rays shining upon his pale skin and hazel-brown eyes and the breeze blowing at his favorite blue jacket. After the sun has fully been covered by the darkness of the night, the mansion did quickly transform in a magical way. The Mansion got so big, he had to move his head to fully see it's width. Its lights were blinding, yet so majestic to the eyes. The carvings and the intricate designs on the walls made him go nearer to see and feel it up close. He touches the building's walls, and the feeling of old concrete had made him go in awe. As he turned his head, he caught a glimpse of a beautiful lady, wearing a white dress with her hair gently swept by the wind and her face shining with the moon's gentle rays. She was standing in the mansion's terrace, and her hand was extended, suggesting Victor should go inside. He was so amazed in his dream that he wanted to explore more of the Mansion, but before he could lay hold to the front door's handle, his dream was cut off by his alarm.