A Bad Memory (long-form test)

I've never told this story before. Partly because it sounds ridiculous. Partly because even now, years later, it still feels like a memory, not a story.

I was fifteen when it happened. Every summer my dad sent me to spend weeks with my cousin Jensen in Northern Ontario. He was like a brother to me. Those hunting trips meant everything. It was late November, the woods were gray and brown, and we were tracking a buck.

We found the deer in a shallow trench carved into the forest floor. It was barely alive, barely breathing. Jensen had gone back for the sled. 'Stay here,' he'd said. 'If anybody comes through here, hide.' So I stayed. And I was alone. Watching that animal die.

Then I heard something. At first I couldn't place it. But after a minute, I realized what I was hearing. Voices. Two voices. They sounded far away. Not shouting. Not really talking. Bickering. Like an old couple having the same argument they'd had a thousand times.

I froze. My first thought was landowners. Maybe other hunters. Panic took over and I climbed a nearby tree. Not high enough to feel safe. Just high enough that maybe nobody would see me. And that's when I noticed something that still bothers me. I could hear two voices. But I could only hear one set of footsteps. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

Then I saw movement through the trees. At first, pale skin. Almost gray. The figure stepped into view. It looked like a woman, but something was deeply wrong. Her head was shaved with scabs across her scalp. One shoulder sat noticeably lower than the other. She had a strange, permanent limp. But she moved with purpose. And two voices came from one mouth.

She walked directly toward the deer as if she'd known exactly where it was. The deeper voice spoke. 'What is this doing here?' The other replied. 'An oasis.' She dropped to her knees beside the buck. The voices repeated things over and over. And then she lowered her head toward it.

Comment 'more' for what happened to that deer, why Jensen made me leave, and the ancient name I still won't repeat. Full story on YouTube, link in bio.