Aurora Magazine 2019

And Makanimit was wasting no time. In fact, at present not only was he very much with me, but he was stronger than ever be - cause…well, I was more afraid than ever, After all, I’d brought this on myself. He was practically licking my ear with sadistic glee; I could almost envision his wolf-like face, eyes rolling back in ravenous anticipation. The worst part was that old feeling of knowing that he knew I knew he knew I knew he was there…I realized that once the curtain was peeled back it was going to be the end for me, and honestly? I welcomed it. This was torturous. But after a mini eternity, Dad opened the door, flipped on the light, and ordered me to go clean my room. Why, oh why did I look back on my way out of the bathroom? Hadn’t I learned anything from Lot’s wife in Sunday school? I may not have turned into a literal pillar of salt, but the color drained out of me enough for Paddy to tell me I was “white as a ghost” when he saw me again. And it was like that for years – me finding myself in a dark place with curtains, Makanimit getting ever cozier with my soul. I thought, after about a decade of peace, that I had shaken him off somehow – maybe I’d accidentally said the right prayer or some - thing at church – but when I was about 19 or so I was lying on my back asleep in bed when this being of pure darkness appeared over me quite suddenly. He planted two pitch black arms on either side of my head, apparently standing on the floor behind me (how stupid had I been exposing my head like that to an open room?), leaned in and “whisper shouted” I’M BACK!!! right in my face, startling me awake…except I wasn’t quite awake. I tried to scream “MOM - MY”, but it kept coming out backwards, “MEMA! MEMA!”, and Makanimit didn’t move. My roommate who was in the bunk above my feet (it was the old one-horizontal, one- vertical bunkbed setup) called my name until I woke, and the demon dissipated. I told him what

99