This was something I wrote when I was 13 for an essay about how someone can change your life dramatically. I just found it saved on my computer and I’m quite impressed seeing how young I was.

In the dim light, Kara Leigh went to the window. Her auburn hair lay unkempt on her shoulders but you would not notice because her enthralling beryl-green eyes captured you at first glance. Trembling she peered through the blinds. The wind from the mountains pressed its chilly tendrils against the pane of glass, making it bow slightly. This silent reassurance was all the comfort she needed. Calmed, but not yet willing to return to bed Kara put on her black silk robe and headed towards the kitchen.
The cobblestone floor and distressed cabinets were all the more welcoming now that a pot of water sat boiling on the stove. Kara walked to the pantry and retrieved a canister of her favorite herbal tea and a jar of her grandmother’s honey. She set the tea to steep and hopped onto the concrete counter. She had an air of elegance abound her, even in this distressed state. Her thoughts raced through her mind about yesterday evening’s occurrence.
Kara and her best friend, Tina, were at the carnival when Tina got the idea to visit a fortune teller. Tina was told that love would soon appear in the most unexpected places and she should expect advances in her career. A very uplifting reading. When Kara walked in, however, the mood was very different.
The air was heavy around her and the pungent scent of sandalwood invaded the cramped tent. A plump older woman dressed in black and perse, smiled and welcomed her to take a seat on the opposite cushion. Kara did this, and placed her hands palm up on the table in front of her.
“When the wind is still in the mountains and the sun fails to rise on time, be wary of a pale rider, upon his pale horse.”
The fortune teller looked up and Kara briefly caught a glimpse of fear in her eyes. Kara went home in a daze.
The timer beside her went off signaling her tea was ready, but she was too preoccupied to drink it now. Could this possibly be true? Or was this just a hoax? Kara suspected the latter, but somewhere deep in her subconscious she was frightened. Only after a few moments of silence did she put two and two together. In two weeks the winter solstice would arrive, bringing with it the longest night of the year. The sun would not rise at its usual time. Fear constricted Kara’s throat and it suddenly became difficult for her to breathe. Too anxious to go back to bed, Kara took a few sips of her tea. It was only two hours until she would normally get up anyway.
Kara brushed a few strands of her hair out of her face and maneuvered her laptop bag in front of her as she stepped through the elevator doors. Just three floors until she could settle into the office that she and Tina shared. She would finally be able to confront Tina about the other night’s occurrence.
All went well for the first few hours as Tina and Kara work on developing a new level in the new horror game they were developing; ‘Sylan’s crystals”. Shortly after two o’clock Tina was called into the boss’s office. She was to be mentoring the new intern Greg. Kara’s thoughts immediately jumped to what the Fortune teller had said, “[Tina] should expect advances in her career”. Mentors get a bonus for every week they work with an intern. Kara brushed it off as merely a coincidence until later that week. Greg had been hired for a rival company, and Kara received a call from Tina. Tina and Greg had been on a date and hit it off smashingly. This quick conversation concluded with well wishes and a sigh as Kara remembered the rest of the fortune teller’s predictions for Tina.
Kara was feeling rather overwhelmed with this whole predicament. Should she write a will?
No, she was just taking things way out of proportion. Or should she be cautious anyway. Kara decided that the best thing to do was to jot down on a piece of paper that she wished for her body to be donated to science. She signed, dated, and stuck the piece of paper in her wallet.
The days grew dimmer for Kara as the nights grew colder. All that she could hope for is that the wind would be blowing on the solstice. Three hours until the sun would set on winter solstice. Kara paced back and forth impatiently for the majority of this time. She occasionally glanced at the trees in the near distance and saw that they swayed lightly in the breeze. Good she thought as she settled into her favorite arm chair to read the latest issue of Instyle. There was no need to worry in the first place; the old woman was just a carnival fortune teller. Did Kara even believe in those kinds of things anyway?
About fifteen minutes until pitch black, Kara stood up and stretched. She turned to television on with a flick of the remote and tuned into the news. She strutted over to the large bay window and noticed that the trees no longer danced delightfully. In fact, not even the slightest breeze was blowing. Kara began to grow faint, as the blood rushed from her head. A haze of gray flooded Kara’s vision and she collapsed to the floor in a fit of convulsions. Anibus, the god of death, loomed ever near, and slowly, the crimson river from Kara’s skull grew and stretched onto the living room floor. Outside the wind grew and the leaves bristled on the trees.
It was irrational fear that took the life of Kara Leigh that night. Vulnerable and impressionable in her thoughts she caused herself to become ill by the mere suggestion of a stranger. The fortune teller had a fatal impact on her life as a result few seconds of a one-sided conversation.

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