a woman standing in a dark forest with a light in her hand

**The Whispering Woods** Every town has its legends. In this one, they spoke of the Whispering Woods, a stretch of forest so quiet it seemed to absorb sound. No birds sang, no leaves rustled in the wind. Mia didn’t believe the stories, of course. She’d grown up hearing tales of people who wandered too far into the woods and never came back. But tonight, under the full moon, she felt brave. Armed with just a flashlight, she ventured in. At first, it was just as the stories described--eerily silent. Then, she began to hear whispers. Faint at first, like someone calling her name from far away. “Mia… Mia…” She froze. The whispers grew louder, circling her, though she saw no one. The flashlight flickered, and the beam caught something in the distance: a pale figure standing motionless between the trees, its head tilted unnaturally. “Mia,” it said, but its mouth didn’t move. The sound came from everywhere. Her legs refused to move, her breath caught in her throat. The figure raised a hand, skeletal fingers c