The Piano

[Sean Bracken]

The Piano by Sean Bracken


With each leaden step that carried him deeper into the woods, Vasile Bucur grew more nervous. His senses screamed at him to turn and run. Only his pride kept him going. That and the fact that he was flanked on each side by the Hodus Twins, Stefan on his left and Andrei on his right.

Vasile was twelve years old. The twins two years older, and the leaders of the Wolf Pack, a gang of young hoodlums that were responsible for nearly all the petty crime in the village. Tonight Vasile intended to join the gang. He had five sisters and his mother to care for. Without the money he earned from odd jobs they would surely starve and this was his chance to earn a lot more for them. But first things first. He had to show his bravery and loyalty by completing his rite of passage.

The boys were heading towards the ruins of Castle Romanov. Vasile would have to spend an hour alone inside the ruins. One large obstacle stood in his way. Everyone knew that the castle was haunted.

The story was that back in the distant past a young prince had married a beautiful girl from the village. The prince was the sole heir to his father the Count’s vast estates. He was also last in line to Vlad the Impaler.

The Count, furious with his son for marrying a commoner and not the bride chosen for him, plotted revenge. The beautiful young bride vanished on her wedding night. The prince, distraught at his loss, died soon after from unbearable grief. His father, unable to live with what he had done, took his own life soon after.

Late into the afternoon, the boys arrived at their destination. The once great castle lay in ruins. A clinging mist swirled around the ramparts, adding a sense of gloom and foreboding to the scene.

Vasile could feel his heart thumping in his chest. If it beat any faster, it would surely explode, he thought. Steeling his resolve, he trudged alone across the rickety remains of a drawbridge and past a rusty gate, into the gloom. A pair of staircases lay twisted and broken on the floor of the grand hall. Vasile continued into a great library, pulling cobwebs away from his hair and face. The library was dank with the smell of decay. Piles of leather bound books, covered in mould lay strewn about, added to the stench.

Every sense screamed at Vasile to run, but as if possessed he proceeded deeper into the dark passages. His body moved against his will until he arrived at a large ballroom. This room was just as dank as all the others, devoid of furnishings, except for a grand piano leaning precariously on two legs. Despite the dust and grime, it was obvious that this was once an opulent place, designed for feasting and dancing.

The eerie presence that had drawn Vasile this deep into the castle now propelled him towards the piano. He sat on a stool in front of the keyboard and started to play on the ancient instrument. Eyes closed, he imagined playing in front of a party of royalty, ladies of high fashion and gentlemen of aristocratic bearing.

As Vasile continued to play ever so subtly the music changed. What were random notes created by inept fingers on broken keys, became beautiful haunting sounds. His hands played with a life of their own. Switching at will from romantic waltzes, to passionate tangos, to lively medleys of classical tunes. Enchanted by the sounds, Vasile opened his eyes. The room was transformed. The piano now resplendent with ornate candelabra on its gleaming white top. The keys restored to the darkest ebony and brightest ivory.

The rhythmic sound of feet dancing on the shining beech floor attracted his attention. He looked up to see a handsome young couple dancing to his music. Spellbound, he watched as they stepped in perfect harmony with each other. Their faces reflected pure joy, while their eyes shone with eternal love.

The exquisite scene was disturbed by hands pulling at him and voices shouting at him.

“Vasile, Vasile wake up lad,” they said. “How can you sleep in this stink pile?”

It was Stefan and Andrei. They had become concerned when hours had passed with no sign of Vasile returning to them. Overcoming their own fears, they had gone in search of their friend, at last finding him sleeping at the old piano. Vasile looked up bemused. He stared past his friends and saw where their footsteps had left traces in the dust. Then he looked to the dance floor, where to his horror he saw a young couple fade away into nothing and on the floor, the footprints of perfect dance steps etched into the dirt.

Right in front of their eyes, Stefan and Andrei saw Vasile’s hair turn from jet black to snow white. His skin aged so that he looked like a very old man. Then, as the flesh fell from his bones, Vasile turned to dust and drifted onto the floor. The Bukur twins screamed a scream that could be heard for miles around, then took to their heels and ran for their lives. It was too late. Despite weeks of searching, not a trace of the boys was ever found.


The End

[DATo]

Hi Sean,

I was in just the perfect mood for some gothic horror and you delivered splendidly *L* Your descriptions were very nicely rendered and I could get a very real sense of the decay and gloom in the spacious and once opulent ballroom. The transition from Vasile's piano playing to the much grander playing was a nice touch too.

Thanks for sharing!

[Sean Bracken]

Thank's DATo, I'm still working on it. I hope to enter it in a competition in January. The prompt was Piano. I think the plot and setting are okay, but the characters need some more work as does the back story of the count and his son. I'll repost it here when I've finished.

Sean

-- 06 Dec 2016, 16:36 --

I've made a lot of changes to this story. Unfortunately, I can't find a way to edit the post. So here's a link to the new version. I hope you enjoy it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B86qV7 ... sp=sharing