NOTE: Betaed and co-developed by the irreplaceable Bardicsidhe. Thanks, girl.

The children noticed first. So many little things. Scratch of claw and scrabble of hoof against concrete. Unspeakable silhouette carved into darkness outside a window. Slant of sunlight broken by misplaced shadow. Footsteps, soft, soft, with nary a body in sight. Faintest touch, faintest brush of cold talon against yielding skin. Monsters fluttering in and out of sight like heat mirages caught in a camera shutter.

So the children obeyed the unspoken rules.

Don't move.

Hide.

It's not there.

It's not there.

Please.