The Haunted Rabbit

Alice’s stuffed rabbit was haunted.

            At first, she thought she was the one being haunted but after finding her favourite childhood toy in different places for the past two weeks, she knew the truth. It made her shudder every time she thought of it.

            It all started thirteen days ago after having her first sleep paralysis. It had been terrifying. She had just laid there, on her bed, her mind fully awake but her body asleep. She still remembered her inability to move and the dark figure in the corner of her room.

That’s probably why she was here now, looking at the Ouija board in the random charity shop she had decided to visit on impulse on her way home. What were the odds that she would find an Ouija board while she was going through this paranormal experience that was making her sleep with the lights on? Damn big ones, apparently.

            Alice remembered Nina, her best friend, saying something about Ouija boards being also called “spirit boards”. They allegedly were portals to the Otherworld or to other worlds, Alice wasn’t sure, she hadn’t paid attention much. All she knew was that the Ouija boards were supposed to be toys for kids that let you communicate with the spirits of the dead, but were believed to be more dangerous.

            I doubt it can get any worse than it already is, she thought as she touched the board. She felt like she should feel something, maybe chills, maybe a dark sinking feeling in her stomach as people always described it. But she didn’t.

 Alice didn’t care much about it, but a hint of curiosity made her pick it up. Maybe she could contact that thing whose presence was still in her toy. She was sure that if she left it in her room, she would wake up at some point, finding it on the bed with her. Chills ran all over her body at the thought of it. Yes, she was going to buy the Ouija board and try to contact that thing. She had experienced so many unexplainable things in the past few days and far from boring, her life had become quite eventful, to say the least.

            All because of the damned haunted toy.

It all began thirteen days ago.

 Alice was having a dream about going on a walk with her deceased grandmother who she had been very closed to.

Alice didn’t remember her dream exactly, it hadn’t been a vivid one, at least not in the beginning. All she could recall was her walking in the woods with her grandmother who seemed to be in her twenties. She had always been young at heart.  They were walking and talking about nothing in particular, looking at the beautiful scenery of the forest, when suddenly, her grandmother turned, grabbing onto Alice’s shoulders with an intense expression.

‘Don’t let him take you,’ her grandmother said with a surprising intensity.

Alice woke up with a start then. She wanted to sit up, but couldn’t. She tried moving her arms but couldn’t. She couldn’t even flex her muscles. She felt trapped. She was lying on her side and she could hear her increasing heartbeat. She tried to swallow but failed..

Something caught her attention in the darkness. A tall, black figure stood in the corner of her room, unmoving. It appeared to be watching her.

Am I still dreaming? Alice wondered, trying to blink the image away. It could be just my hoodies…

But her hoodies didn’t have legs or arms, they also weren’t in the corner, they were hanging to the side, next to her window. Then what was that? Was it a person? Alice didn’t think so, it looked too… It appeared to be more of a silhouette than a real person. What was it? It just stayed there, unmoving, watching her. She was grateful her bed was far away from it.

Alice closed her eyes and hoped sleep claimed her again. She didn’t know how long she laid like that, eyes squeezed shut, paralysed, but when she opened them, it was morning and she was free again.

But the feeling of being watched remained.

She never saw the pink smiling rabbit leaving her room after she passed out from tiredness.

The following night Alice jolted awake. She had been having a dream about her grandmother again. This time they had been cross-stitching together. Something similar had happened. During their very ordinary and almost boring activity, her grandmother had gone out of character, grabbing Alice for the shoulders, startling her.

‘You mustn’t let him catch you,’ her grandmother had said with more force in her voice than before. Before Alice could ask who she meant, she had awoken.

Alice laid in her bed again, unable to move. All she could do was close her eyes and try to go back to sleep. Her body obviously agreed as it refused to move at her commands.

However, try as she might, she just couldn’t go back to sleep. She could feel eyes on her, watching her quietly. She could picture that dark figure from last time, staying in the corner, watching her again, unmoving.

In her mind, she was fidgeting but in reality, she was lying still in her bed. Should she open her eyes and look at it again? She wanted to, but was afraid. Alice still didn’t know what to make of it. Was this just a dream or something else? Was this a recurring dream where her grandmother played the main role? Or was it something different entirely?

She opened her eyes, curious to see if the figure was actually there or if she was imagining things. She immediately wished she hadn’t. Her pink rabbit, which she had left in her wardrobe the day before, was lying next to her. She wanted to scream.

Alice bought the Ouija board. She decided that it couldn’t do too much bad. She was sure her stuffed toy rabbit was haunted and she wanted to know why. She also hoped she could contact her grandmother, maybe she should try talking to her first, ask her what was happening. Yes, that’s what she was going to do.

            As she was exiting the store, she saw that an analogue watch was showing thirteen minutes past thirteen. She shuddered, that was ominous, especially after her experience so far.

‘It’s called sleep paralysis,’ Nina, said. ‘Or at least that’s what I think it is.’

            After buying the Ouija board, Alice had immediately called Nina on her way home. Her best friend of ten years was better versed in the paranormal than she was. Nina would always tell her about different rituals she would find on the internet and was always fascinated with them.

            Personally, Alice didn’t see the appeal in being chased by a stuffed doll with rice or by a dead woman, who had passed away by hitting her head in the bath and drowning. The Ouija board was a different story, however. She had always been curious about it, just not enough to try it, and with time, her interest had dwindled. She didn’t necessarily believe that it could work, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.

            ‘Sounds fitting.’ Alice replied. ‘Why does it happen?’

            ‘I’m not sure. There are different theories, some say it’s due to supernatural forces, you know, ghosts and the like. People experiencing sleep paralysis tend to see these dark figures, called the shadow people. But there’s also scientific explanation as well. It’s believed to occur in people with sleep disorders and panic disorders.’

            ‘I don’t have a sleep disorder.’

            ‘Then you must be haunted,’ Nina said light-heartedly.

            ‘I am,’ Alice deadpanned. Well, her toy was.

As she walked in her house, she let out a deep sigh. Her stuffed rabbit had moved again.

‘What is it?’ asked Nina.

‘Rose has moved again,’ said Alice as she took the rabbit from the stairs where it was chilling with its creepy smile.

‘Are you sure you didn’t leave her there?’

‘No, I would never just leave her discarded like that.’

Her grandmother had given her that toy when Alice had been a small child and she had always gone everywhere with it. After she had got too old to play with it, she had put it in the back of her wardrobe and only moved it recently after she had first founded it in a different place. Now, Rose sat on her night stand.

‘Maybe your parents moved it?’

‘Why would they leave it on the stairs? Besides, they are out of town for a month. It’s their anniversary.’

‘It could truly be haunted then,’ Nina said. ‘Could be your grandma. Spirits attach themselves to objects they have emotional connection to.’

‘I don’t believe it,’ Alice said, as she went upstairs. She put Rose back on her nightstand. ‘If anything, I’d be more likely to haunt her at some point. Besides, if it is my grandmother, why does she leave her in random places? I found her in my bed once and in the bath last week. And on top of that, she isn’t the only thing that keeps being moved. I once found my comb in a mug and one of my shirts is still MIA. It doesn’t make any sense.’

‘Paranormal stuff rarely does,’ Nina said.

Alice was about to go downstairs again when  she heard a loud crash there.

‘Oh, shit.’

‘What?’

Alice cracked the door to her room open and peeked through it. It didn’t look like anybody was in the house and after listening for several more seconds, Alice went out to investigate.

‘A plate’s broken.’

‘How?’ Nina said.

‘I don’t know.’

‘Is somebody in the house?’

‘No, it’s just me. That’s what I’ve been telling you all week. Things move or fall, doors open and close on their own and that figure…’

‘Is it Rose?’

‘I don’t know. Weird stuff happens when I’m alone in my house,’ Alice said, looking at the broken plate. It had been her favourite. ‘It’s usually weaker during the day.’

Alice went looking for her broom while still on the phone. She went to the cupboard where she usually kept it and couldn’t find it. Damn it, it was moved. Had she moved it and forgotten where she had put it or was it simply another one of these paranormal things?

‘Oh for God’s sake,’ she muttered.

‘What now?’ Nina said annoyed. Alice had interrupted her.

‘Sorry, it’s just that I can't find the broom.’

‘Did you misplace it?’

‘I don’t remember but I’m so sick of this! I’ll play the Ouija board tonight and see if it works.’

‘No!’ Nina said quickly. ‘You should not play the Ouija board alone. Wait for me and we will play together.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘If I don’t come, you’ll do it anyway and breaking rules is very dangerous.’

‘Why? It’s just a game,’ Alice said as she used her foot instead of a broom to gather all of the bigger and smaller parts in one place and then, balancing her phone between her chin and shoulder, she scooped carefully the bigger pieces of her broken plate and put them in the bin.

‘Ouija boards are portals,’ Nina said. ‘Playing alone is dangerous, I know the rules and you don’t... For all I know, you’ll end up inviting more entities to bother you. Just wait for another hour and I’ll come.’

‘Okay then, see ya later,’ Alice said and grabbed the vacuum cleaner.

‘Who are you?’

            Alice had her fingers lightly touching the planchette as Nina asked the questions. They had gone through several of them with no reply and were starting to get annoyed. At first, they had asked if it was Alice’s grandmother but since Nina knew more about the paranormal, they had agreed for her to lead the game and ask the questions. Alice's job was to keep her mouth shut and keep track of the answers, if any came at all.

            ‘Are you good?’

The planchette moved. It happened so suddenly that Alice and Nina jumped. As the planchette moved to ‘NO’ the two girls exchanged a look. Alice shuddered and put her fingers back on the planchette.

            ‘Who are you?’ The planchette started moving.

            ‘R-O-S-E-M-A-R-Y’

            Alice inhaled sharply. Her grandmother! But was it really?

            ‘How old am I?’ She said just in case.

            The planchette moved again. It slowly made its way to the number two and five. Alice nodded. However, something didn’t feel right. Her grandmother had never went by her full name because she didn’t like rosemary. She loved roses though and that’s why she would ask anybody to call her Rose. That’s why her stuffed rabbit’s name was Rose as well.

            Is it really you? She wanted to ask but felt a bit stupid. Anybody could lie and she wouldn’t know.

            ‘What is my favourite colour?’

            Nina shot her a warning look. She should be asking the questions but Alice couldn’t help it. She was talking to her grandmother! She had to check if it was true or if Nina was just playing tricks on her.

            ‘B-L-A-C-K’

            ‘Rose, what are you trying to tell Alice in her dreams?’ Asked Nina.

            No answer.

            ‘Are you trying to harm her?’

            ‘NO’

            ‘Are you trying to protect her?’

            No answer.

            ‘Is it because of her boyfriend?’

            ‘YES’

             Shit, Alice thought. Oh, no.

            Nina looked at her with wide eyes.

            ‘No, no, no, no,’ she said. ‘That’s a very bad sign.’

            ‘Okay, Rose, we have to go. I’m saying bye now, okay?’

            Nina tried moving the planchette to GOODBYE. This was the only way to end the game safely, she had explained to Alice. She had also told her that if something pretended to be somebody else, it meant they were talking to a bad entity.

            The planchette didn’t move.

            ‘C’mon,’ Nina said as if to herself. ‘I said, goodbye.’

            The planchette remained still. Nina tried moving it a bit more but gave up soon after. It didn’t want to be moved. Alice just sat there, frozen, her fingers still on the planchette, watching her friend while she was trying to end the game.

            It isn’t just a game, she realised. It’s so much more.

            ‘Who are you?’

            ‘M-O-N-O’

            ‘Oh my god,’ Nina said wide-eyed. ‘Are you the ghost in the rabbit?’

            ‘YES’

            ‘What do you want?’

            ‘A-L-I-C-E’

            Alice shuddered uncomfortably and Nina mirrored her. Alice motioned her to keep going nonetheless.

            ‘Are you sure?’ Nina asked with uncertainty in her voice. ‘This can be a very bad entity.’

            Alice nodded.

            ‘Why?’ Nina asked the board.

            No answer.

            ‘Do you want to hurt Alice?’

            No answer.

            ‘Would you leave her alone?’

            ‘NO.’

            ‘Why?’ This came out as a partial sob.

            No answer.

            ‘Answer me!’

            The planchette suddenly jerked ahead, moving frantically.

            ‘A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z’

            Alice didn’t know what was happening, didn’t know what the thing meant by ‘azaza’ but it couldn’t be good. Nina’s expression was one of pure terror. She watched her friend as she tried to stop it by moving the planchette to goodbye but it wouldn’t let her. Alice wasn’t sure why but she was afraid, she was so afraid she couldn’t move. Her limbs were cold and numb.

            ‘A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z’

            ‘He’s trying to escape the board,’ Nina said.

‘Goodbye, goodbye,’ she started saying, trying to move the small piece of wood to goodbye, she also tried to spell out the word, but it wouldn’t stop going through the whole alphabet. Eventually, Alice just gave up and lifted her fingers off of the planchette. Nina let it go after her

            ‘A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-A-Z-AZ-A-Z-A-Z’

            ‘Stop it,’ Alice whispered. ‘Stop it.’

            The planchette started moving even more frantically. It was making an infinity sign now. Alice just sat there, her cheeks were wet just like Nina’s and her whole body was freezing. She wanted to run away but she couldn’t move.

            ‘Stop it!’ She finally cried out and the planchette shot out of the board, making the two girls scream. It hit the door and fell on the floor, unmoving.

            Alice stared at it and when nothing happened she grabbed the Ouija board and the planchette, ran to the kitchen, where her big bin was and tossed them there.

            ‘This won’t help, we didn’t say goodbye,’ Nina said. ‘The portal is open, we should get out of here!’

            ‘I don’t have anywhere to go,’ Alice told her.

            ‘You can stay with me,’ the lack of hesitation in Nina’s reply warmed Alice’s heart. It also made her decision final. She couldn’t let her friend be hurt because of her.

            ‘No, Nina. We played in my house, but the damned rabbit moves on its own... You go and we’ll talk tomorrow.’

            ‘Are you sure?’

            Alice nodded and helped Nina to her feet. She saw her friend off to the front door and as she did, she saw the light coming from the windows downstairs. It was morning. They had played the game for, what seemed to them just a few minutes, but it had actually been hours. Alice shuddered. One of the bad signs Nina had told her about before starting the game was that losing time meant they were dealing with something evil.

            ‘Go,’ Alice whispered as her friend gave her one last final look. She was going to be okay. She hoped her friend was going to be okay as well.

Her grandmother’s face was a mask of pure horror. Where her eyes had been, there were black pits instead, worms crawling out of them. Her mouth was sewn together and her nose was bleeding black blood.

            Alice was having a nightmare.

            ‘He’s going to catch you.’ It was like her grandmother was speaking in her head.

            ‘Who? What are you talking about?’

            ‘Mono is going to catch you. He caught me after all.’

            ‘Wait, what? What do you mean?’

            ‘It’s too late now.’

            Her grandmother disappeared and Alice awoke. She wished she hadn’t.

            Alice laid on her back, paralysed yet again. This time, something was different. She couldn’t open her eyes and she was suffocating. There was a weight on her chest, it felt like something was pressing her or sitting on her. She tried opening her eyes but couldn’t. It felt like they were glued together.

            Her heartbeat was raising and it felt like her whole body was pulsing with it. She was cold again. Alice wanted to move so desperately but couldn’t. Help, she wanted to say but she was alone. Please.

            No sound came from her mouth, all she could do was lie there, choking.

            Suddenly, the great weight was lifted off of her and she managed to take in a big breath and open her eyes. Her stuffed rabbit was standing next to her, it seemed bigger than it was, its hands came up to her throat and started pressing, squeezing, choking her. She wanted to scream but she couldn’t. How was it so strong? She couldn’t breathe yet again. This time, however, it didn’t stop. The smiling rabbit kept squeezing her throat until the light went out of her eyes.

            There on the bed laid a girl as if sleeping but a closer look would show the lack of life in her eyes. The house was noisy with all of the lights on and doors slamming themselves repeatedly. One would think the house wanted to let the neighbours know what had occurred. But nobody came and the girl remained there, waiting to be found.

Nina woke up with a start. Her heart was beating frantically. She had been having a nightmare but she couldn’t remember it now. In her sleepy daze she turned around and barely suppressed a scream.

            There, next to her on her bed laid a Ouija board and a pink stuffed rabbit, smiling at her.