Ghost stories - 2nd story

    "There once lived a small boy who loved animals. He loved them so; he could never bear to see an animal in distress.
    "One day the young boy saw a cat while he was playing outside. He followed the cat, and the cat started to run. So the boy started to run too. Soon they were running and running down toward the river, where the boy's mother had warned him not to go.
    "The steep climb down to the river would take some time for a grown man to do, let alone an eight year old boy-- so the young boy soon lost track of the cat. But here he was, tangled in leaves and branches, and he couldn't turn back, so the boy knew the only way to go was forward.


    "He climbed down the steep hill till he got to the bottom, and he finally found the river. He waded in a bit, then spotted something. A Kappa! His mother's warning came rushing back to the boy. But he could see the Kappa was dying. The water had spilled out of the bowl atop its head.
    "So the boy waded over to the Kappa. He scooped up water, put it in the bowl. Scooped up more, put it in. Then he waited. After a while of waiting, the Kappa opened its eyes and stared at the boy. It stared for a while. Then, ever so suddenly, it splashed under the water and swam away.
    "The boy returned home. He never told his mother about the Kappa, and he never went back to the river again. He grew up. When he thought of that strange encounter, he told himself it must have been a dream. He moved away.
    "Then one day the boy's father had decided to hold a party. The boy, now a man, returned to his childhood home. At some point in the party he grew tired and decided to take a walk.
    "As he reached the river, he was overcome with a strange sense of déjà vu. 'I feel like I've been here before,' he murmured to himself. So he climbed down to the river, with much more ease than he had when he was a boy.
    "Suddenly, he heard a rustle in the leaves. A Kappa! Another rustle. And another. Kappas emerged from all around him, grabbing him to drag him down to the lake below to drown him. But then the last Kappa, the eldest, emerged.
    "He gave the Kappas a look, and they reluctantly let go of the man. The old Kappa looked at the man. 'You saved me. I saved you. Now we are even. Do not come here again.' The man made haste and was back at his father's house faster than he could usually run. 
    "He had a wall built around the river so no-one would ever be in the same situation as he had been in. Then he moved away once more. He got married, had kids. His wife passed away. His children grew up and moved away. Alone, the man moved back once more to his childhood home.
    "He walked over to the wall around the river, climbed up on it, and sat there. The older Kappa emerged. 'Hey there,' said the man. The Kappa grunted in greeting. 'My kids have all grown up now. My wife has passed away,' said the man. 'What about you? Where are all the other kappa?' 
    "'They moved downstream,' said the Kappa. 'They couldn't stand it here anymore. Too much people. The waters have been polluted.'
    "'Well,' said the man, putting his arm around the Kappa, 'I guess it's just you and me now, huh, bud?'
    "The Kappa put his arm around the man. 'No,' he said, 'it's just me.'


    "They could hear the screams from a mile away."



•°•°•°•°•°•°•°The end•°•°•°•°•°•°•°
Hope that didn't scare y'all out too much!