Well done to all who entered the TY run ‘Spooktacular’ creative writing competition. The standard of entries was very high. Watch out for more competitions in the coming months. You can read the entries from our winners and runners up below. Enjoy!
Senior Winner (TY to 6th Year)
William Curran (5th Year)
Our last years
Hell’s bells, they toil and sing.
And to us comes the reckoning.
Through plague, through famine.
Through war and death.
Hell’s armies march at man’s behest.
Through misery, through suffering.
Through strife and pain.
And as our leaders argue and blame.
The old Earth draws its final breaths.
Soon we’ll join her in sweet death.
Our lands lay burning; our heroes lay slain.
Let’s just hope next year holds less pain.
Junior Winner (1st to 3rd Year)
Hugh O’Brien (1st Year)
I woke up to hear knocking on glass. At first, I thought it was the window until I heard it come from the mirror again, I opened my eyes and they took a while to adjust to the darkness of the room. The knocking noise was loud and it would not stop, it was like something was trapped behind the glass trying to get out, trying to grab my attention. I had the horrible felling I was being watched, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and a cold breeze blew through my bedroom. I pulled the blankets over my head but was still shivering, that was when I realized I wasn’t shivering from the cold but from fear.
My brain was screaming at me to ignore it and go back to bed but for some reason I got up and walked over to the mirror. I looked into it and the reflection I saw staring back at me chilled me to the bone. My reflection had heavy bags under its eyes, it looked like it had never slept. Its skin was ghostly white and its mouth hung open as if it were screaming. I saw the reflection of my room in the background, locker was lying on the ground the lampshade was ripped off and the bulb was smashed and the shards were spread out on the floor. It was like something out of a horror film. I must have been screaming because my parents ran in asking what was wrong, I tried to show them what I saw, but when I turned back the horrible reflection was gone.
While I was walking to school all I could think about was that horrible reflection, the thought of it haunted me at break and on the walk to the bus stop, on the bus ride home I was replaying the moment in my mind over and over. I could remember every detail and the picture of it was horrifyingly vivid every time I closed my eyes. I was horrified but for some reason I was curious as to what this thing was and why I was seeing it. I decided to go home and google it, I took out my laptop and typed in, Horrifying reflection in my mirror before deleting it and deciding that I wouldn’t get any satisfactory results. I tried looking in the mirror again but could only see my normal room not the crazy reflection that had stared back at me the night before. Laying down on my bed I decided to pull an all-nighter to see whether or not this thing would come back, and of course, it did.
I stood at the mirror looking at my reflection when suddenly it changed, I could see the opposite reflection and the opposite me on the other side. This time it was holding a sign that said “Swap for a day?” to this day I still don’t know why but I accepted. I nodded in agreement and then the reflection pointed at me and gestured for me to come towards him. As soon as I got close to the mirror the reflection laughed maniacally. It reached out a hand and pulled me through the mirror and all of a sudden, I was on the messy side of the room and was staring back at the reflection now smiling an evil grin. “Meet me back here at Eleven O’clock tomorrow, that is if you survive.” the reflection laughed again before leaving the room.
I felt paralyzed I was stuck on the spot no part of my body could move and my mind was racing. The reflections words were being said over and over again in my mind, “That is if you survive” I shuddered what will I do just hide in this room all day? I decided upon going outside and exploring this world I was
in. Stepping carefully over the shattered glass I worked up the confidence to open the door. I opened it and all I could hear were screams. The hallway was pitch black except for a crack of light coming through a door left slightly ajar. I leaned up against the door and listened in on a conversation going on inside the room. It sounded like two people, a man, and a woman, talking in hushed voices. Suddenly, my foot slipped and I fell forward into the room, two tall figures turned around and I could hear them asking me who I was however I did not dee their mouths opening and closing, they always stayed wide open just like the reflection. The people seemed to be losing their patience and started shouting at me. I panicked and ran and they followed. I had never sprinted faster in my life, as I was running all I could hear was the reflection’s voice saying “that is if you survive” over and over. I ran down the stairs and into a sort of sitting room and jumped through an open window. I hit the footpath with a thud and shouted out “Ow” every person on the street turned to me their mouths wide open with that shocked expression. I heard one of the creatures from the house cry out “Get Him” and all of a sudden everybody was chasing me. Rounding a bend, I thought about where I would hide, and that is when I saw it, a shipping container about big enough for me to crawl into. I checked behind me to make sure there was nobody watching me and crawled in, I was extremely tired from all the running and fell asleep.
When I woke up it was dark and the sun had nearly set, I realized I would have to get back to the mirror before Eleven or I would be trapped in this place. I snuck past the crowds, and through the sitting room window before crawling my way up the stairs. I knew the creatures would be waiting in the room for me so I threw the nearest object to me as far as I could and hid behind a door. Sure enough as soon as they heard the noise, they went to investigate. I creeped down the hallway as quietly as possible. The creatures must have realized it was a distraction and came racing up the stairs I ran towards the bedroom and jumped through the mirror and pushed my reflection back to the other side. The reflections disappeared and I got into my bed.
About half an hour later I woke up to a strangely familiar noise, the noise of knocking on glass…
Senior Runner up
Devan Colfer (5th Year)
A Peculiar Knocking
I woke up to hear knocking on glass. At first, I thought it was the window until I heard it come from the mirror again.
I rolled over, my back to the mirror. Finding solace in the warm sheets, I decided to wait the knocking out. However unlike bullies or annoying younger relatives, ignoring this problem didn’t make it go away.
The knocking continued again and again. Growing in strength, until I was sure it would break down the glass.
There was no other option.
Summoning whatever bravery could be dragged from the pit my heart and stomach had jumped into, I pulled off the comforting shield of my sheets. Standing bare foot on the cold ground I approached the mirror.
It didn’t look spooky, nor was it bought in a fair or creepy yard sale. It was normal, save the constant knocking.
It’s happened before, about four times through my childhood, the other times I simply ran to my parents, finding comfort in their reassurances that the supernatural wasn’t real. But I was older now, I couldn’t just run to ‘Mommy and Daddy’ when I got scared.
I approached the mirror slowly, as my reflection approached me. Looking into the mirror and at myself, I couldn’t see anything that could be creating the knocking, except for my reflection.
I stared at the mirror for a solid minute watching myself stare back. I moved my head from side to side, paying attention to my reflection doing the same movements in unison.
Eventually I came to the conclusion that I was simply imagining things, that my parents were right. I turned back to my bed. But as I turned I saw, in the corner of my eye, that my reflection didn’t turn. Instead it raised its hand, and knocked on the glass.
Junior Runner up
Sam Ryan (1st Year)
Well done to the TY organising committee!
