As the final, mournful notes of the song faded into the wind, the nursery door creaked shut behind Elara. The candle blew out. In the sudden dark, the only sound left was the rhythmic drip, drip, drip of water onto the rug, and the faint, ghostly humming of a melody that never truly ends.
The figure turned. She had no face, only the shimmering reflection of the water where features should be. Flora reached out and pressed a small, warm hand against the cold glass of the window. O Willow Waly (The Innocents) ~ Ashley Serena
Elara stood by the iron-wrought gate of the manor, the distant, haunting melody of drifting from the upper nursery windows. It wasn’t a record playing. It was a voice—silvery, cold, and achingly young—matching the ethereal depth of Ashley Serena’s lullaby. As the final, mournful notes of the song