The moon is full and an eerie orange color. I know they are out tonight. Maybe waiting on me. I throw on my jacket and tie my converse on my feet. If my parents knew that I was sneaking out at night, they would kill me. Quietly, I sneak into the kitchen and out the back door.

The night air is cool and feels good against my feverish skin. I’ve been sick for a while now. That’s how I can see them. The monsters. I sniff and wipe away the snot seeping out of my nose. I zip up my coat to keep the heat in.

The trees are dense and black in the night. Crooked and bent in every way. They make me think of my new friends. Small balls of light appear and dance in the trees on both sides of the path. Sprites. Glowing sprites to be exact. Children would mistake them for fairies. There is nothing fair about them.

Their hair is greasy and is a large, black cotton ball around their heads. They wear dead leaves and plants as clothing. Their skin is an undead gray color and their eyes are pitching black. They give off that light so they can lure little kids into the woods. Where they eat them. They’re really delicate though. Just by touching them causes major damage to their frail bodies.

The Sprites fly ahead, leaving me alone once more. Well, not technically. When the moon is full like this, the Night crawlers are out.

Humans mistake them for stray dogs or large cats. Close up, Night crawlers have larger eyes and teeth. Their claws are about two inches long and help them climb trees quickly. Hence the name Night crawlers. They’re like werewolves but werewolves don’t exist. Night crawlers only come out during full moons and they like to feed on road kill or small children in their rooms. They won’t go inside the home unless a window to the child’s room is open. They’re actually kind of cute if you look past the blood in their teeth.

I hear the Night crawlers scamper away after the Sprites. I hear rustling then small little bodies appear out of the trunks of trees. Tree creepers.

They certainly live up to their name. They blend into the trunk of the tree and watch the world around them. If you’re out alone in the woods, a large group of them will over run you and torture you until you die.

The clothes they wear are bark from the tree they creep in. Most of them have moss beards and small beady eyes. Some have large white eyes that are usually mistaking for mushrooms. Compared to a grown man, they are as high as their knees. Usually shorter. People would mistake Tree creepers for gnomes or dwarves. They are short but they hate being called gnome or dwarf. If you want to live, make sure you call them Tree creepers.

The dark shadows of the Tree creepers fade in the distance. Ahead I can see a small fire. I am getting close now. I hear the flapping of wings. I look up and see the large bodies of Chewas. Chewas are gargoyle and vampire type creatures.

Usually a stony gray color, these creatures hid on the roofs of old gothic buildings. Like vampires, they feed on blood. Vampires originated from Chewas. Thing is, what people consider monsters aren’t even real. Vampires, werewolves, zombies, and any other creature people consider creatures of the night aren’t alive or real. Just legends told around a campfire. The Chewas let out a high pitch cry then disappear ahead of me.

I stop just outside the circle of light and look at them. Chewas, Tree creepers, Sprites, Night crawlers, and other creatures sit around looking at the creature most people mistake for Slender man.

Like Slender man, he has many arms that swirl around his head. All the night creatures and I call him by his real name. Terence Silver. He’s not really a man at all. He’s seventeen. Or has the body of a seventeen year old. He’s thousands of years old. He doesn’t wear a suit. Her wears a black tee-shirt and black, ripped jeans. His hair is a light blond. His bangs hang over his eyes.

His eyes are an endless, black abyss. His lips are pale and blend into his skin. I wipe my nose on my sleeve then step into the light.

The creatures become ecstatic when they see me. Terence’s small lips smile and he nods at the log across from his. I sit down and sniff. A Night crawler rubs against my leg and makes a deep purring noise. Terence raises his hand and everything goes quiet. “We didn’t think you would come. How do you feel?” I rub my nose and smile.

“Good enough to come out. I’m still cold though. And my head won’t stop throbbing.” He nods his head as if understanding.

“You know we can make you better right? You just have to ask.” I sniff and try not to shiver. “All you have to do is let me heal you.” He gets up and holds his hand out to me. I wipe the snot dripping from my nose and take his hand.

“I’m afraid okay? I don’t want to die Terence. I’ve been sick since I was six and now I’m seventeen. The doctors still don’t know what’s wrong with me.” I want to desperately press my face into his chest but I don’t think he will approve. Proving me wrong, he pulls me to him and wraps all of his arms around me. Leaving me in a warm, darkness.

“It’s okay to be afraid. Everyone is. Let me heal you Wendy. Let me take away your sorrows.” His voice is soft and soothing.

“Okay. I’ll let you.” I feel something wet and warm against my lips. I feel the sickness and weakness seep down and into the soil. Everything drains. I feel his arms loosen and disappear but I still feel his lips against mine. Strength and power transfer from his lips to my own. Finally, his lips separate from mine. I open my eyes and blink from the light.

Where the moon would be is a large black sun that warms my skin. I look at Terence and notice that he’s changed. His skin is now a tan color and his eyes are a beautiful sky blue. The creatures are not the definition of fear anymore. The Night crawlers are small fluffy creatures. Kind of like cats. The Sprites are colorful and beautiful. Everything else is beautiful in their own way.

“You’re one of us now Wendy. You see us how we see each other. Beautiful and kind. If you see the animals and people how we see them, you would call them the monsters. They despise people or creatures that don’t follow the rules of nature. Wendy, if you saw how they see you now, you would have nightmares about your image. You don’t look the same anymore. You’re eyes are empty sockets and there is no color in your skin. You have thousands of arms coming out of your back like I did. You’re now what they would call ‘Slender Woman.’” Terence smiles and sits down in front of the fire. “We hide during the night and come out during the day. In their world, we would be sleeping during the day and about during the night. That’s why they call us Night Freaks.” I sit down beside him.

“So now, I’m what they would consider a monster?” He sighs.

“Everyone is a monster Wendy. Some people just know how to hide it.”