Dora walked into the cottage and looked around happily as she discovered her new space to unwind and finally finish her book. Here, she felt free: free from her outside life, which included thoughts about her husband. She needed time away from him to assess their relationship. Here, she was alone and excited to have some much-needed “alone time.” She looked out the window and saw nothing but miles of forest, which comforted her.

Rather than immediately write, Dora just wanted to take a long walk in the woods and collect her thoughts. As she walked and admired the nature around her, she also felt a sense of enchantment. The forest felt somewhat magical to her, especially when she saw this one mushroom that the sun particularly glistened on. It was unlike any mushroom she had ever seen.

Dora returned to her cottage and noticed that the kitchen had a bricked-up fireplace, which she thought was odd, but it also had a large window overlooking the forest, which she thought would be an optimal place for writing. Dora was writing a horror novel set in a desolate forest, so the isolation provided her with inspiration.

That evening, Dora sat in her preferred spot with a glass of wine and began to write. The night was still, and the cottage was silent. And then, the scratching began. At first, she wasn’t sure where it was coming from, but she quickly realized it was coming from inside the fireplace. Her first thought was that there might be mice in there, and she would contact the property manager in the morning. She detested mice, but the bricks reassured her that they would not be able to get through, so she continued writing elsewhere in the cottage.

The next day, the exterminator arrived. He checked the property and said that there were no rodents anywhere in the cottage or the immediate surrounding land. Dora was relieved but puzzled.

That evening, Dora attempted to write in her preferred spot again. She heard the scratching again, but this time it was louder, and she began to feel threatened that whatever it was might actually get through the bricks! Bravely, she walked over to get a better understanding of what was going on. As she stepped closer to the fireplace, she heard terrible sounds—as if someone, or something, was eating something, or even someone else! She was immediately alarmed and let out a cry. Right after that, the eating stopped, and all she heard was heavy breathing followed by harsh banging!

Dora quietly and quickly left the cottage, feeling that whatever was in there could hear her every move. She safely made it outside but was now in the midst of darkness. As she tried to navigate, she saw a light. Nearing the light, she noticed an entrance to her cottage that she was unaware existed. Her curiosity got the best of her, so she followed it.

Dora looked inside and saw what appeared to be a wine cellar. She walked further in and saw nothing there. At that point, she decided to turn around and go back outside, but she couldn’t because the door she came in through no longer existed! She tried to stay logical, figuring that it must be there somewhere; it wasn’t possible for it to just disappear. Then, a wild beast, seemingly a werewolf, ran toward her! She screamed for help, and then heard a woman’s voice call her name. When she turned around, she saw the owner of the voice.

The woman tamed the werewolf by putting him on a leash and chaining him to the brick wall, where he proceeded to make those scratching sounds Dora had been hearing. She approached Dora and said, “Dora, you have made a grave mistake by coming here.”

Dora asked in an aggressive tone, “How do you know my name? Who are you?”

The woman responded:

I know many things about you, one of which is that you are writing a horror story. Another is that you are having problems in your marriage because you accuse your husband of doing things that he’s probably not even doing and that are all in your head. I can hear your conversations on the phone; I’m right behind the bricks. Also, to answer your second question, I’m the owner of this property, and I regret to inform you that I will have to kill you because of what you have seen tonight.

Dora, in shock, had so many questions and emotions going on inside her that she didn’t even know what to say. Above all, her first instinct was to survive, so she grabbed a brick from the floor and warned the woman not to come any closer. The woman began to snicker and then said:

If you really think you have a chance of surviving with that one brick, you are not as smart as I thought, but I do applaud your courage. Oh, and don’t waste your time trying to escape; that door no longer exists. It’s something I created, so just as easily as I created it, I can destroy it as needed. You may be asking yourself how that is even possible. Since you will die tonight, there’s no harm in me providing you with the answers you are seeking.

I have the power to do things like this because I am a witch, and this werewolf here that I am tending to is my husband. I did this to him because of my own narcissism and ignorance, not knowing how torturous it would be for him and myself. You see, my husband is a very handsome man who was working an overnight shift at the local pub, which also has some desperate and “loose” women who noticed just how handsome he was. He had been let go from his former job, so he had to take this one. Although I trusted my husband, I didn’t trust the other women around him, so I put a spell on him that he would no longer be attractive to anyone during the night hours. I just wanted to have control of the situation without being there, but I had no idea that it would turn him into a werewolf until the night of the massacre.

As I have heard, he showed up to work and then left, saying he didn’t feel well, but then shortly after, there was a bloody massacre at the pub by an animal unknown to any of the locals. Needless to say, those questionable ladies, along with others, are no longer alive, and the pub no longer exists. No one has been able to connect anything that happened with my husband, but I was inclined to think it could have been him because of the spell. The next night, when I was at home with him, I saw his transformation into the werewolf and needed to tame him and bring him to a safe place. The only place I could think of was this cottage, so I continued to bring him here each night. He also has no memory of anything he did or what he turns into during the night. I want to revoke the spell, but the only way to do it is for him to eat a very peculiar mushroom that I have not been able to find.

As Dora listened to this story, her will to survive strengthened. She thought of a proposition for the witch! She had remembered that very special mushroom and had an idea of where it was, so she asked the witch if she would spare her life if she found and delivered the mushroom to her. The witch thought about this proposition and then accepted. She also went on to tell Dora, “I have a piece of your hair”—which she showed her—“that got caught on the bricks as you entered. I can track your every move with this. If you try to escape, I’ll know where to find you and will kill you.” The witch then opened the door and told her she had 24 hours to find the mushroom and bring it to her. She also warned Dora that if it were the wrong mushroom, she would kill her.

Dora tried to sleep that night, but it was almost impossible after that encounter. The next morning, she cleared her head and tried to remember where the mushroom was. She wandered around for a bit, and then remembered its location. She had a very keen memory and a vivid imagination, which was good for her writing but not very good for her relationships. She also thought about what the witch had said about her relationship with her husband. She knew she had absolutely no evidence for her accusations about her husband, who had done nothing but love her. This was not the first time she had falsely accused someone due to her overthinking. She wanted to stop being like this, but it was difficult because her mind never rested.

And there it was—gleaming under the sun—the mushroom! Dora carefully uprooted it and put it into her bag to deliver to the witch.

Dora arrived by the secret entrance that evening, but before she could announce herself, the witch knew she was there and opened the door. The witch hastily grabbed the mushroom and fed it to her husband. He began to transform back into a human. The witch smiled and told Dora, “Thank you. You have found the mushroom, and you will be able to live. However, how do I know you won’t write about this or tell anyone?”

Dora insisted and promised she would not do either of those things. The witch laughed at her and said, “Your promises are worthless to me. I wasn’t born yesterday, but rather over 200 years ago!” She then grabbed Dora by the head firmly. Dora cried out for a moment and then fell to the floor. The witch picked up her body and left her unconscious somewhere in the woods.

The next morning, Dora woke up not knowing who she was or where she was. Unbeknownst to Dora, since she had no memory of the witch, her entire memory was removed before she was released. Dora walked aimlessly for a day or two on instinct to survive, stopping at the lakes in the forest to hydrate. She eventually ended up on the side of a road and waved her hands for help. A car stopped abruptly; her husband was driving. When she wasn’t answering her phone, he had decided to find her. He stopped the car and quickly ran to her aid. They were crying in each other’s arms; Dora felt the familiarity of his warmth. He felt a bump on her head and, after speaking to her, realized she had amnesia, so he assumed she had fallen and hit her head. He brought her into the car, and they drove to a hospital.

While all of this was happening, the witch was watching from afar. She smiled and said to herself, “Now, you are free, Dora. You are free from your bad thoughts and can start anew with someone who truly loves you.”